First fossil Molinaranea Mello-Leitão, 1940 (Araneae: Araneidae), from middle Miocene Dominican amber, with a phylogenetic and palaeobiogeographical analysis of the genus

Abstract

The first fossil Molinaranea is described, from middle Miocene Dominican amber. This record extends the known range of the genus back 16 million years; it also extends the geographical range of the genus through time, with extant species known only from Chile, Argentina, the Falkland Islands, and Juan Fernandez Island. A parsimony-based phylogenetic analysis was performed, which indicates that the fossil species, Molinaranea mitnickii sp. nov., is nested with Molinaranea magellanica Walckenaer, 1847 and Molinaranea clymene Nicolet, 1849. A modified Brooks parsimony analysis was conducted in order to examine the biogeography and origins of the fossil species in the Dominican Republic; the analysis suggests that M. mitnickii sp. nov. arrived in Hispaniola from South America as a result of a chance dispersal event. © 2010 The Linnean Society of London.