Mynogleninae, Lehtinen, 1967

Silva-Moreira, Thiago Da, Kulkarni, Siddharth & Hormiga, Gustavo, 2025, A total evidence phylogenetic analysis of the spider family Linyphiidae (Araneae, Araneoidea), Zootaxa 5685 (1), pp. 1-78 : 53

Mynogleninae and the Australian grade ( Figs 6 , 12 )

Mynogleninae monophyly has been repeatedly corroborated in a diversity of analyses (e.g., Hormiga 1994, Arnedo et al. 2009, Wang et al. 2015, Silva-Moreira & Hormiga 2022). Frick & Scharff (2013) carried out an extensive phenotypic cladistic analysis on mynoglenines, which included representatives from both Africa and New Zealand and included for the first time Afrotropical mynoglenines. In their hypothesis, the monophyly of Mynogleninae is supported by the following synapomorphies: paracymbium intersegmental membrane covering half of the alveolus, paracymbium with a straight inner margin, a small radix with a proximal part teardrop-shaped almost indistinct from the embolic base, presence of the subocular clypeal sulci, cheliceral setae basis as a distinct bump and at least one ventral distal macroseta on tarsus IV.

Frick & Scharff (2013) also recognized that a partially sclerotized embolic membrane attached to the tegulum could be an apomorphy of mynoglenines. Our interpretation of the morphology follows Silva-Moreira & Hormiga (2022), where the tegular membrane was not considered homologous to the embolic membrane. In our hypothesis ( Fig. 1 ), Mynogleninae monophyly is supported by 17 synapomorphies, but only one, the presence of subocular clypeal sulci (char 168) in both sexes, is non-homoplasious. Additional homoplasious transformations under our preferred hypothesis include the absence of macrosetae on the male palpal tibia (char 4), the absence of an embolic membrane (char 87), and juxtaposed pedicel sternites on males (char 227) ( Fig. 12 ).

Mynoglenines are nested within a clade that includes Australolinyphia, Laperousea , two species of Laetesia ( Laetesia raveni and Laetesia sp _NSW), and Palaeohyphantes . To make easier to reference, we have named all the non-mynoglenines in this clade as the “Australian grade.” Palaeohyphantes simplicipalpis is the sister group of Mynogleninae instead of Australolinyphia remota , as in previous studies ( Arnedo et al. 2009, Wang et al. 2015). Palaeohyphantes + Mynogleninae is supported by seven synapomorphies, including two or more cymbial macrosetae (char 29), no cymbium retrolateral lobe (char 43), a pear-shaped tegulum (char 59), a curved embolus (char 91), and the absence of dorso-ectal macrosetae on female palp (char 193).

A third species of Laetesia (“ Laetesia ” sp MAA 2009) is the sister group of the MCP clade (Marginal Cephalothoracic Pits—see below). This species is the terminal labeled as “ Laetesia ” in Arnedo et al. (2009) study. The genus Laetesia Simon currently has 25 species described (WSC, 2025), but with a confusing taxonomy and diagnostic features loosely defined. As a thorough exploration of the taxonomy of Laetesia is far from the scope of this study, we decided to keep Arnedo et al. ’s (2009) tentative generic placement for this specimen in question.

In our optimization, the Mynogleninae + Australian grade lineage is supported by four synapomorphies: a suprategulum distal in relation to tegulum (char 76), the foramen on the tegulum instead of the suprategulum (char 77), absence of a lamella characteristica (char 111), and a cylindrical or ellipsoid opisthosoma (char 214). All components of the Australian grade are here considered incertae sedis until further better evidence of their placement to be collected and analyzed.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Preferred hypothesis: Bayesian analysis tree from the total evidence dataset M4 (M4_MB) depicting the proposed new arrangement. Colors represent same previous subfamilial assignments. Black arrow indicates “linyphioids” node. Red arrow indicates Linyphiidae node. Red colored rectangles indicate the correspondent Superclades. Green colored rectangle indicate the novel circumscription for the MPME clade. Black squares represent nodes with full support (posterior probability =1).

FIGURE 6. Partial tree from the preferred hypothesis for linyphioids (M4_MB). ConoSur clade and Clade A. Solid rectangle indicates Clade A circumscription. Black-colored squares represent nodes with posterior probability =1; gray-colored squares represent nodes with posterior probability between 0.95 and 0.99.

FIGURE 12. Optimization of the phenotypic matrix characters (DELTRAN optimization) on the pruned preferred hypothesis tree. Orange box indicates Clade A circumscription. Red box indicates Clade B circumscription. Black circles indicate nonhomoplasious optimizations (synapomorphies/ autapomorphies), while white circles indicate homoplasious transformations.