Chelifer cancroides (Linnaeus, 1758)

Christophoryová, Jana, Rusinko, Adam, Purkart, Adrián & Vičanová, Lucia, 2025, Urban biodiversity of pseudoscorpions (Arachnida: Pseudoscorpiones) in the conditions of Central Europe, Zootaxa 5590 (1), pp. 1-45 : 24

Chelifer cancroides (Linnaeus, 1758)

( Figs 6E , 7C )

Published data: 11: individual sampling in a flat, 29.5.2013, 1 ♂, leg. B.M. ( ChristophoryovÁ et al. 2017a); 72: extraction of Hirundo rustica nest, 26.8.2010, 1 ♀, 1 ♂, 1 T, 6 P, leg. J.J., R.Z. ( ChristophoryovÁ et al. 2017a); 154: individual sampling in a flat, 18.9.2012, 1 ♀, 2 ♂♂, 2 T, leg. M.S. ( ChristophoryovÁ et al. 2017a); 169: individual sampling on window parapet, 2.3.2013, 1 ♂, leg. B.L. ( ChristophoryovÁ et al. 2017a); 182: extraction of Taeniopygia castanotis nest, September 1997 – March 1999, 2 ♀♀, 2 ♂♂, 1 D, 6 P, leg. not specified ( Cyprich et al. 2000); 190: individual sampling on a body, 9.6.2013, 1 ♀, leg. V.S. ( ChristophoryovÁ et al. 2017a).

New data: 15: individual sampling in a flat, 24.3.2009, 1 ♀, 2 ♂♂, leg. L.O.

European distribution: Albania, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Moldova, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Romania, Russia (European part), Serbia, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom ( WPC 2024).

Notes: Chelifer cancroides is a cosmopolitan species ( WPC 2024) that prefers synanthropic habitats, including bird nests near human settlements.This is also supported by records from Bratislava ( Cyprich et al. 2000; Christophoryová et al. 2017a). Tömösváry (1882) reported the species’ occurrence in Bratislava without specifying the biotope and habitat type. Three adults were collected in a flat in Dúbravka and represent the only new data on the distribution of the species in Bratislava .

Figures

FIGURE 6. Pseudoscorpions from the families Neobisiidae, Cheiridiidae, and Cheliferidae. A. Neobisium carpaticum (female, loc. 184). B. Neobisium erythrodactylum (male, loc. 6). C. Neobisium sylvaticum (male, loc. 25). D. Apocheiridium ferum (tritonymph, loc. 127). E. Chelifer cancroides (male, loc. 11). F. Dactylochelifer degeerii (male, loc. 127). Scale bars: 0.5 mm.

FIGURE 7. Distribution of the species of Neobisiidae, Cheiridiidae, and Cheliferidae in Bratislava city. A. Neobisium sylvaticum. B. Apocheiridium ferum. C. Chelifer cancroides. D. Dactylochelifer degeerii. For the locality codes, see Table 1.