First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution
<title>Abstract</title><sec><title>Background:</title><p>The brown widow spider (<italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> Koch, 1841) has colonised many parts of the world from its continent of origin, Africa. By at least 1841, the species had successf...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SciELO
2015-08-01
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| Series: | Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1678-91992015000100318&lng=en&tlng=en |
| _version_ | 1819117439536857088 |
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| author | Mustakiza Muslimin John-James Wilson Amir-Ridhwan M Ghazali Kamil A Braima John Jeffery Fitri Wan-Nor Mohamed E Alaa-Eldin Siti-Waheeda Mohd-Zin Wan S Wan-Yusoff Yusoff Norma-Rashid Yee L Lau Mahmud Rohela Noraishah M Abdul-Aziz |
| author_facet | Mustakiza Muslimin John-James Wilson Amir-Ridhwan M Ghazali Kamil A Braima John Jeffery Fitri Wan-Nor Mohamed E Alaa-Eldin Siti-Waheeda Mohd-Zin Wan S Wan-Yusoff Yusoff Norma-Rashid Yee L Lau Mahmud Rohela Noraishah M Abdul-Aziz |
| author_sort | Mustakiza Muslimin |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | <title>Abstract</title><sec><title>Background:</title><p>The brown widow spider (<italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> Koch, 1841) has colonised many parts of the world from its continent of origin, Africa. By at least 1841, the species had successfully established populations in South America and has more recently expanded its range to the southern states of North America. This highly adaptable spider has been far more successful in finding its niche around the world than its famous cousins, the black widow, <italic>Latrodectus mactans,</italic> found in the south-eastern states of North America, and the red-back, <italic>Latrodectus hasselti</italic>, found mostly in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods:</title><p>We performed an extensive web search of brown widow sightings and mapped the location of each sighting using ArcGIS. Specimens reputedly of the species <italic>L. geometricus</italic> were collected at three localities in Peninsular Malaysia. The spiders were identified and documented based on an examination of morphological characteristics and DNA barcoding.</p></sec><sec><title>Results:</title><p>The spiders found in Peninsular Malaysia were confirmed to be <italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> based on their morphological characteristics and DNA barcodes. We recorded 354 sightings of the brown widow in 58 countries, including Peninsular Malaysia.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion:</title><p>Reports from the Americas and the Far East suggest a global-wide invasion of the brown widow spider. Herein we report the arrival of the brown widow spider in Peninsular Malaysia and provide notes on the identification of the species and its recently expanded range.</p></sec> |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T05:33:00Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b8105a66f7634d88b60ed59388d166fd |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1678-9199 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T05:33:00Z |
| publishDate | 2015-08-01 |
| publisher | SciELO |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases |
| spelling | doaj.art-b8105a66f7634d88b60ed59388d166fd2022-12-21T18:37:25ZengSciELOJournal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases1678-91992015-08-0121010.1186/s40409-015-0010-2S1678-91992015000100318First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distributionMustakiza MusliminJohn-James WilsonAmir-Ridhwan M GhazaliKamil A BraimaJohn JefferyFitri Wan-NorMohamed E Alaa-EldinSiti-Waheeda Mohd-ZinWan S Wan-YusoffYusoff Norma-RashidYee L LauMahmud RohelaNoraishah M Abdul-Aziz<title>Abstract</title><sec><title>Background:</title><p>The brown widow spider (<italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> Koch, 1841) has colonised many parts of the world from its continent of origin, Africa. By at least 1841, the species had successfully established populations in South America and has more recently expanded its range to the southern states of North America. This highly adaptable spider has been far more successful in finding its niche around the world than its famous cousins, the black widow, <italic>Latrodectus mactans,</italic> found in the south-eastern states of North America, and the red-back, <italic>Latrodectus hasselti</italic>, found mostly in Australia, New Zealand and Japan.</p></sec><sec><title>Methods:</title><p>We performed an extensive web search of brown widow sightings and mapped the location of each sighting using ArcGIS. Specimens reputedly of the species <italic>L. geometricus</italic> were collected at three localities in Peninsular Malaysia. The spiders were identified and documented based on an examination of morphological characteristics and DNA barcoding.</p></sec><sec><title>Results:</title><p>The spiders found in Peninsular Malaysia were confirmed to be <italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> based on their morphological characteristics and DNA barcodes. We recorded 354 sightings of the brown widow in 58 countries, including Peninsular Malaysia.</p></sec><sec><title>Conclusion:</title><p>Reports from the Americas and the Far East suggest a global-wide invasion of the brown widow spider. Herein we report the arrival of the brown widow spider in Peninsular Malaysia and provide notes on the identification of the species and its recently expanded range.</p></sec>http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1678-91992015000100318&lng=en&tlng=en<italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic>Brown widow spiderColonizationDNA barcodingEnvenomationGlobal invasionInvasive speciesMedically important arthropodsSynanthropy |
| spellingShingle | Mustakiza Muslimin John-James Wilson Amir-Ridhwan M Ghazali Kamil A Braima John Jeffery Fitri Wan-Nor Mohamed E Alaa-Eldin Siti-Waheeda Mohd-Zin Wan S Wan-Yusoff Yusoff Norma-Rashid Yee L Lau Mahmud Rohela Noraishah M Abdul-Aziz First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution Journal of Venomous Animals and Toxins including Tropical Diseases <italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> Brown widow spider Colonization DNA barcoding Envenomation Global invasion Invasive species Medically important arthropods Synanthropy |
| title | First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| title_full | First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| title_fullStr | First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| title_full_unstemmed | First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| title_short | First report of brown widow spider sightings in Peninsular Malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| title_sort | first report of brown widow spider sightings in peninsular malaysia and notes on its global distribution |
| topic | <italic>Latrodectus geometricus</italic> Brown widow spider Colonization DNA barcoding Envenomation Global invasion Invasive species Medically important arthropods Synanthropy |
| url | http://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S1678-91992015000100318&lng=en&tlng=en |
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