Taxonomic revision of the jumping goblin spider genus Orchestina Simon, 1882 (Araneae: Oonopidae) in Japan with descriptions of two new species
Abstract
The goblin spider genus Orchestina Simon, 1882 (Araneae: Oonopidae) in Japan has been revised, recognizing nine species including two new species and four species newly recorded from Japan: O. okitsui Oi, 1958 (♂♀), O. flava Ono, 2005 (♂♀), O. sanguinea Oi, 1955 (♀), O. saaristoi Henrard & Jocqué, 2012 (♂♀, new record), O. saltitans Banks, 1894 (♂♀, new record), O. colubrina Liu, Henrard & Xu, 2019 (♂, new record), O. pavesii (Simon, 1873) (♂♀, new record), O. nojimai sp. nov. (♀) and O. insulana sp. nov. (♀). A literature survey revealed errors in the correspondences between figures and captions in a pictorial book, which likely led to the misidentification of the synanthropically introduced species O. saltitans as the forest-dwelling native species O. okitsui. The misrepresentation also gave rise to the erroneous assumption that the male of O. sanguinea had been described, although no male specimen has actually been reported. In addition, Orchestina flagella Saaristo & van Harten, 2006, is here synonymized with O. saltitans (O. flagella syn. nov.). This study provides photographs and illustrations of nine Orchestina species, including the type specimens of O. okitsui, O. flava and O. sanguinea, notes on their habitats, distribution maps, supplemental molecular data, and a graphical character matrix of Orchestina species in Japan.
References
Arai K. 2026. Misidentification of Orchestina species. Kishidaia 128: 19–20. [In Japanese.]
Banks N. 1894. Two families of spiders new to the United States. Entomological News 5: 298–300.
Barrett R.D. & Hebert P.D. 2005. Identifying spiders through DNA barcodes. Canadian Journal of Zoology 83: 481–491.
Brescovit A.D., Bonaldo A.B., Ott R. & Chavari J.L. 2019. To boldly go: on invasive goblin siders in Brazil (Araneae, Oonopidae). Iheringia, Série Zoologia 109: e2019033. https://doi.org/10.1590/1678-4766e2019033
Brignoli P.M. 1967a. Su alcuni Oonopidae delle isole Ponziane. Fragmenta Entomologica 4: 141–148.
Brignoli P.M. 1967b. Oonopidae di Sardegna e Puglie (Araneae). Rendiconti, Istituto Lombardo di Scienze e Lettere (B) 101: 360–368.
Comstock J.H. 1940. The Spider Book, Revised and Edited by W.J. Gertsch. Cornell University Press, Ithaca.
Crandall K.A. & Fitzpatrick J.E. Jr. 1996. Crayfish molecular systematics: using a combination of procedures to estimate phylogeny. Systematic Biology 45: 1–26. https://doi.org/10.1093/sysbio/45.1.1
Dalmas R. de 1916. Révision du genre Orchestina E.S., suivie de la description de nouvelles espèces du genre Oonops et d’une étude sur les Dictynidae du genre Scotolathys. Annales de la Société entomologique de France 85: 203–258. [In French.]
Emerton J.H. 1909. Supplement to the New England Spiders. Transactions of the Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences 14: 171–236.
Hatsushiba S. & Kono R. 2009. Reports of spider collecting camp by Tokyo Spider Study Group in 2007: spider of Okutama-cho, Tokyo. Kishidaia 96: 97–107. [In Japanese.]
Hedin M.C. & Maddison W.P. 2001. A combined molecular approach to phylogeny of the jumping spider subfamily Dendryphantinae (Araneae: Salticidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 18: 386–403.
Henrard A. & Jocqué R. 2012. An overview of Afrotropical canopy-dwelling Orchestina (Araneae, Oonopidae), with a wealth of remarkable sexual dimorphic characters. Zootaxa 3284: 1–104. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.3284.1.1
Hidaka R., Hino Y. & Megumi K. 2026. A list of spiders collected in Oita and Kumamoto prefectures, Japan in 2024. Kishidaia 128: 62–68. [In Japanese.]
Irie T. 2002. Checklist of spiders in Nagasaki Prefecture. Kishidaia 83: 65–78. [In Japanese.]
Izquierdo M.A. & Ramírez M.J. 2017. Taxonomic revision of the jumping goblin spiders of the genus Orchestina Simon, 1882, in the Americas (Araneae: Oonopidae). Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 410: 1–362. https://doi.org/10.1206/0003-0090-410.1.1
Kaston B.J. 1938. Notes on little known New England spiders. The Canadian Entomologist 70 (1): 12–17. https://doi.org/10.4039/Ent7012-1
Korea National Park Research Institute 2019. 2018 Dadohaehaesang National Park Nature Resource Survey, Land. Korea National Park Research Institute, Wonju.
Korenko S., Šmerda J. & Pekar S. 2009. Life-history of the parthenogenetic oonopid spider, Triaeris stenaspis (Araneae: Oonopidae). European Journal of Entomology 106: 217–223.
Kumada K. 2002. Spiders collected in Fukui Prefecture in 2002, Japan. Shinobigumo 30: 61–68. [In Japanese.]
Kumada K. 2012. Spiders collected in Ise-jingu Shrine, Mie Prefecture, Japan. Shinobigumo 39: 18–28. [In Japanese.]
Lazarov S.P. 2005. Spiders (Araneae) from Maquises in south-west Bulgaria – Part I. Acta Zoologica Bulgarica 57: 145–152.
Le Peru B. 2011. The spiders of Europe, a synthesis of data. Vol. 1: Atypidae to Theridiidae. Mémoires de la Société linnéenne de Lyon 2: 1–522.
Lee J.-G., Kang S.-H. & Kim S.-K. 2024. Review of the checklist of spiders (Araneae) in national parks of Korea. Journal of National Park Research 15 (2): 70–84.
Liu K., Xiao Y.H. & Xu X. 2016. On three new Orchestina species (Araneae: Oonopidae) described from China. Zootaxa 4121 (4): 431–446. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4121.4.4
Liu K.K., Henrard A., Xiao Y.H. & Xu X. 2019. On three new oonopid species from China and the discovery of the male Orchestina bialata Liu, Xiao & Xu, 2016 (Araneae: Oonopidae). Zootaxa 4701 (3): 235–256. https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.4701.3.2
Lin Y.J., Li S.Q., Mo H.L. & Wang X.H. 2024. Thirty-eight spider species (Arachnida: Araneae) from China, Indonesia, Japan and Vietnam. Zoological Systematics 49 (1): 4–98. https://doi.org/10.11865/zs.2024101
Marples B.J. 1955. Spiders from western Samoa. Journal of the Linnean Society of London, Zoology 42 (287): 453–504. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1096-3642.1955.tb02217.x
Melic A. 1994. Arañas nuevas o de interés de la fauna ibérica (Arachnida: Araneae): Notas aracnológicas aragonesas, 2. Zapateri, Revista Aragonesa de Entomología 4: 109–118. [In Spanish.]
Minh B.Q., Schmidt H.A., Chernomor O., Schrempf D., Woodhams M.D., von Haeseler A. & Lanfear R. 2020. IQ-TREE 2: New models and efficient methods for phylogenetic inference in the genomic era. Molecular Biology and Evolution 37 (5): 1530–1534.
Morgan-Richards M., Trewick S.A. & Stringer I. 2010. Geographic parthenogensis and the common tea-tree stick insect of New Zealand. Molecular Ecology 19 (6): 1227–1238.
Oi R. 1955. A new species of genus Orchestina from Japan. Acta Arachnologica 14 (1): 41–44. https://doi.org/10.2476/asjaa.14.41
Oi R. 1958. Three new species of the six eyed spider. Acta Arachnologica 15 (2): 31–36. https://doi.org/10.2476/asjaa.15.31
Ono H. 2005. Two new six-eyed spiders of the genera Orchestina and Comaroma (Araneae, Oonopidae and Anapidae) from Japan. Bulletin of the National Museum of Nature and Science Tokyo (A) 31: 37–43.
Ono H. 2009. The spiders of Japan with keys to the families and genera and illustrations of the species. Tokai University Press, Kanagawa. [In Japanese with English title.]
Ono H. 2011. Spiders (Arachnida, Araneae) of the Ogasawara Islands, Japan. Memoirs of the National Museum of Nature and Science Tokyo 47: 435–470.
Palumbi S.R., Martin A., Romano S., McMillan S.O., Stice L., & Grabowski G. 2002. The Simple Fool’s Guide to PCR, Version 2.0. Department of Zoology and Kewalo Marine Laboratory, University of Hawaii, Honolulu. Available from https://stacks.stanford.edu/file/druid:yh393jm6703/Simple_Fool%27s_Master%20PCR.pdf [accessed on 1 Jan. 2026].
Pekár S. & Gajdoš P. 2001. Orchestina pavesii (Simon, 1873), an oonopid spider new to Slovakia (Araneae: Oonopidae). Arachnologische Mitteilungen 21: 50–53. https://doi.org/10.5431/aramit2106
Petrunkevitch A. 1910. Some new or little known American spiders. Annals of the New York Academy of Science 19: 205–224.
Petrunkevitch A. 1920. Description of Orchestina saltitans Banks (Arachnida). Journal of the New York Entomological Society 28: 157–160.
Platnick N.I., Abrahim N., Álvarez-Padilla F., Andriamalala D., Baehr B.C., Baert L., Bonaldo A.B., Brescovit A.D., Chousou-Polydouri N., Dupérré N., Eichenberger B., Fannes W., Gaublomme E., Gillespie R., Grismado C.J., Griswold C.E., Harvey M.S., Henrard A., Hormiga G., Izquierdo M.A., Jocqué R., Kranz-Baltensperger Y., Kropf C., Ott R., Ramírez M.J., Raven R.J., Rheims C.A., Ruiz G.R.S., Santos A.J., Saucedo A., Sierwald P., Szűts T., Ubick D. & Wang X.-P. 2012. Tarsal organ morphology and the phylogeny of goblin spiders (Araneae, Oonopidae), with notes on basal genera. American Museum Novitates 3736: 1–52.
R Core Team. 2024. R: A language and environment for statistical computing. R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria. Available from https://www.r-project.org/ [accessed on 1 Jan. 2026].
Rambaut A. 2018. FigTree v1.4.4. Available from http://tree.bio.ed.ac.uk/software/figtree/ [accessed on 1 Jan. 2026].
Ranasinghe S. & Benjamin S.P. 2025. Phylogenetic position and redescription of Orchestina manicata Simon, 1893 (Araneae: Oonopidae). Journal of Insect Biodiversity and Systematics 11 (1): 117–127. https://doi.org/10.61186/jibs.11.1.117
Saaristo M.I. 2001. Dwarf hunting spiders or Oonopidae (Arachnida, Araneae) of the Seychelles. Insect Systematics & Evolution 32 (3): 307–358. https://doi.org/10.1163/187631201X00236
Saaristo M.I. 2007. The oonopid spiders (Aranei: Oonopidae) of Israel. Arthropoda Selecta 15 (2, 2006): 119–140.
Saaristo M.I. 2010. Araneae. In: Gerlach J. & Marusik Y.M. (eds) Arachnida and Myriapoda of the Seychelles islands: 8–306. Siri Scientific Press, Manchester.
Saaristo M.I. & Harten A. van 2006. The oonopid spiders (Araneae: Oonopidae) of mainland Yemen. Fauna of Arabia 21: 127–157.
Saaristo M.I. & Marusik Y.M. 2004. Ferchestina, a new genus of oonopid spiders from Russian Far East (Aranei, Oonopidae). Arthropoda Selecta 13 (1–2): 51–54.
Saaristo M.I. & Marusik Y.M. 2009. A new genus and species of oonopid spider (Araneae, Oonopidae) from Ukraine. ZooKeys 24: 63–74. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.24.278
Saitama City 2021. History of Saitama City. Nature Edition – Insects. Saitama City, Saitama. [In Japanese.]
Shinkai A. & Tanikawa A. 2009. Reports of spider collecting camp by Tokyo Spider Study Group in 2008: spider of Shionoe-onsen and Goshikidai, Takamatsu-shi, Kagawa. Kishidaia 95: 39–48. [In Japanese.]
Shinkai A. & Tanikawa A. 2015. Collection information. Yushi (Newsletter of the Arachnological Society of Japan) 36: 10–12. [In Japanese.]
Simon E. 1873. Aranéides nouveaux ou peu connus du midi de l'Europe. (2e mémoire). Mémoires de la Société royale des Sciences de Liège (2) 5 (8): 1–174.
Simon E. 1882. Études arachnologiques. 13e Mémoire. XX. Descriptions d’espèces et de genres nouveaux de la famille des Dysderidae. Annales de la Société entomologique de France (6) 2: 201–240.
Simon E. 1893. Histoire naturelle des araignées. Deuxième édition, tome premier. Roret, Paris. https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.51973
Song C.X., Tong Y.F., Bian D.J. & Li S.Q. 2024. A survey of the genus Orchestina Simon, 1882 (Araneae, Oonopidae) from Xishuangbanna, China, with descriptions of five new species. Zoosystematics and Evolution 100 (1): 255–277. https://doi.org/10.3897/zse.100.117968
Song C.X., Bian D.J., Tong Y.F. & Li S.Q. 2025. A survey of Orchestina Simon, 1882 (Araneae, Oonopidae) from Xishuangbanna, China, with descriptions of eight new species. ZooKeys 1249: 247–288. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1249.163886
Suzuki Y. 2019. Michinoku spider trip 2018. Kishidaia 115: 74–86. [In Japanese.]
Suzuki Y. 2020. Spiders collected in Chiba Prefecture. Kishidaia 117: 64–67. [In Japanese.]
Suzuki Y. 2024. First records of Orchestina okitsui Oi, 1958 (Araneae: Oonopidae) and Cladothela parva Kamura, 1991 (Araneae: Gnaphosidae) in Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, collected by sticky traps. Bulletin of the Tokushima Prefecture Museum 34: 85–87.
Suzuki Y. & Hisasue Y. 2024. Spiders collected from Chichi-jima Island, the Ogasawara Islands, Japan between 2022 and 2024. Kishidaia 125: 61–91. [In Japanese with English title.]
Suzuki Y., Hidaka R. & Tatsuta H. 2023. Revision of goblin spiders (Araneae: Oonopidae) in the Nansei Islands, southwest Japan, with description of a new species. Zootaxa 5323 (2): 216–242.https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5323.2.3
Tanikawa A. 2025. A Check List of Japanese Spiders ver. 2025 R3. Available from https://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~dp7a-tnkw/japan.pdf [accessed on 6 Sep. 2025].
Tong Y.F. & Li S.Q. 2011. Six new Orchestina species from Hainan Island, China (Araneae, Oonopidae). Zootaxa 3061: 36–52. https://doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3061.1.2
Wang Y., Wan N., Tong Y.F. & Marusik Y.M. 2021. On the northernmost Orchestina species in China, with a first description of the female of O. zhiwui (Araneae, Oonopidae). ZooKeys 1022: 1–11. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1022.62387
Watanabe S. 2021. Records of Spiders Collected by Sataro Kataoka, Donated to Iwate Prefectural Museum. Research Report of Iwate Prefectural Museum, vol. XXXV. Iwate Prefectural Museum, Morioka. [In Japanese.]
World Spider Catalog 2026. World Spider Catalog. Version 26. Natural History Museum Bern. Available from http://wsc.nmbe.ch [accessed on 1 Jan. 2026]. https://doi.org/10.24436/2
Yaginuma T. 1977. A list of Japanese spiders (revised in 1977). Acta Arachnologica 27 (special number): 367–406. [In Japanese with English title and synopsis].
Yaginuma T. 1986. Spiders of Japan in Color. New Edition. Hoikusha Publishing Co., Osaka.
Copyright (c) 2026 Yuya Suzuki

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Creative Commons Copyright Notices
Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:
- Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
- Authors are NOT PERMITTED to post their submitted work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on personal websites) prior to publication, as it may lead to nomenclatural issues.
