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Despite their
abundance and pivotal role in ecosystems, spiders are often
neglected in biodiversity conservation policies due to their
challenging. Here we aim to assess the ability of DNA barcodes
to delimit and identify spider. Specifically, we compare the
morphology-based identification with the delineations obtained
using single-locus delimitation methods based on distances
(Refined Single Linkage Analysis, BINs) and on evolutionary
criteria (mPTP).
Specimens
were sampled using semi-quantitative protocols in oak forests
distributed across the Spanish Network of National Parks. We
identified 376 morphospecies belonging to 40 families from 8,521
adult specimens. We obtained 3081 DNA barcodes, representing 371
species and 5 individuals for each samples locality.
DNA barcodes
yielded 440 BINs and 366 mPTP clusters, 263 and 252 matched the
morphological species. The remaining species were either split
into two or more clusters, merged in a single cluster or
partially split and merged. After assessing the putative sources
of incongruence, we combined morphological, molecular and
geographic data to propose a revised integrative taxonomic of
Iberian spiders. Our study represents a major step towards the
construction of a DNA barcode library for Iberian spiders that
will ease and automatize identification for future ecological
studies and monitoring programmes. |