Vol. 62, 2023
(update: 2023.1.1)
Using Integrative Approach to
Update a Gap of a Century: Redescription and New Distribution Records
of Grammostola pulchra
(Araneae: Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae)
Renan
S. Pittella1,* , Pedro G. Bassa2 , Edison Zefa3 , and Filipe M. Bianchi4,*
doi:-
1Laboratório
de Ecologia de Interações, Departamento de Ecologia, Universidade
Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre-RS, Brazil. *Correspondence:
E-mail: renanpittella@gmail.com (Pittella)
2Laboratório de Comportamento e Ecologia de Formigas,
Departamento de Ecologia, Zooloogia e Genética, Universidade Federal de
Pelotas, Pelotas-RS, Brazil E-mail: pedrogbassa@gmail.com (Bassa)
3Laboratório de Invertebrados, Departamento de
Ecologia, Zoologia e Genética, Universidade Federal de Pelotas,
Pelotas-RS, Brazil E-mail: edzefa@gmail.com (Zefa)
4Laboratório de Entomologia Sistemática, Departamento
de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto
Alegre-RS, Brazil. *Correspondence: E-mail: bianchi.fm@hotmail.com
(Bianchi)
(Received 8 June 2021 / Accepted 16
November 2022 / Published -- 2023)
Communicated by I-Min Tso
Taxonomic researchers have used
multiple sources of evidence to support species hypotheses and
delimitations. Grammostola
Simon (Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae) comprises 21 valid species endemic
to South America, six occurring in Brazil. The classical morphological
approach based mainly on genitalia may be misleading in recognizing
species in this genus. Then, we used the morphology, geographical
distribution, genetic distance, and phylogeny to support the
redescription of Grammostola pulchra
from southern Brazil, a species described a century ago. We also
diagnosed and illustrated the species. Males have a developed apical
keel at the apex of the embolus; for the first time, this type of
structure has been reported in a species of Grammostola. The molecular analyses
using the partial sequence of Cytochrome c Oxidase subunit I show 7% of
genetic distance (p-distance)
between G. pulchra and Grammostola anthracina. Distance and tree-based
methods (ASAP and bPTP, respectively) assigned G. pulchra as a valid species. The
gene-tree under Bayesian and Maximum-Likelihood recovered a similar
topology, placing G. pulchra closely related to Grammostola burzaquensis and G. anthracina. Morphological
characters which could be important in the taxonomy of the genus are
further discussed.
Key words: Barcoding, COI, Integrative taxonomy,
Neotropical region, Tarantula.
Citation: Pittellav RS, Bassa PG, Zefa E,
Bianchi FM. 2023. Using integrative approach to update a gap of a
century: redescription and new distribution records of Grammostola pulchra (Araneae:
Mygalomorphae: Theraphosidae). Zool Stud 62:05.

Supplementary
materials: Fig.
S1-3
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