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Phalangium

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Phalangium
Male Phalangium opilio
Scientific classification
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Genus:
Phalangium

Type species
Phalangium iberica
Schenkel, 1939
Synonyms

Cerastoma

Phalangium is a genus of harvestmen that occur mostly in the Old World. The best known species is Phalangium opilio, which is so common in many temperate regions that it is simply called "harvestman".[1]

Species

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The genus Phalangium contains the following species:[2]

Valid species (as of 2014)

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Of the 35 species listed above, 6 are valid [P. ligusticum, P. opilio (originally described in 1758, not 1761), P. punctipes, P. riedeli, P. savignyi (originally described by Audouin, not Savigny) & P. targionii], 3 belong to different genera of the opiliones, 4 belong to different arachnid orders, 2 are species inquirenda and 20 are nomina dubia.

The type species is P. opilio, not P. iberica [which has been synonymised with Metaphalangium cirtanum (CL Koch, 1839)], as designated by Latreille in 1810.

In addition to the 6 valid names from the above list, the genus Bactrophalangium (with its 2 species) has been synonymized into Phalangium, 8 species have been described since 2005 and one species described in 1953 is missing from the above list, making a total of 17 species currently recognized as valid.[3]

References

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  1. ^ Mark Schmaedick. C. R. Weeden, A. M. Shelton & M. P. Hoffman (ed.). "Phalangium opilio (Arachnida: Opiliones, Phalangiidae)". Biological Control: A Guide to Natural Enemies in North America. Cornell University. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
  2. ^ Joel Hallan. "Phalangiidae". Biology Catalog. Texas A&M University. Archived from the original on August 9, 2017. Retrieved January 22, 2023.
  3. ^ "Phalangium website". August 28, 2014. Archived from the original on September 5, 2018. Retrieved January 22, 2023.