Records of the Western Australian Museum 17: 355-359 (1996). 
Biosystematics of Australian mygalomorph spiders: description of a new 
species of Missulena from southwestern Australia (Araneae: 
Mygalomorphae: Actinopodidae) 
Barbara York Main 
Department of Zoology, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, Western Australia 6009, Australia 
Abstract - A new species of Missulena from west of Albany, southwestern 
Australia is described and notes on its biology presented. Missulena rugosum 
Ausserer is tentatively reinstated. 
INTRODUCTION 
The trapdoor spider genus Missulena 
yvfalckenaer, the only Australian representative of 
t pe Gondwanan family Actinopodidae, is 
widespread across the continent and occurs on 
s pme offshore islands but is absent from Tasmania, 
p^trly records of the genus in New Guinea 
(Rainbow 1920) are now generally discounted. The 
ggnus has long been recognised as taxonomically 
difficult. It was the first indigenous mygalomorph 
ggnus named from Australia. However, in spite of 
a revision of the genus by Womersley (1943) 
recognition of nominal species is in most cases 
difficult due to a combination of inadequate early 
nineteenth century descriptions, loss of many 
types, absence of locality data for early specimens 
and the conservative morphology. Perhaps the only 
named species which are uneqivocally recognisable 
are M. pruitiosa Levitt-Gregg from northern 
Australia, M. bradleyi Rainbow from mid-eastern 
Australia and two recently described species 
(Faulder 1995). Even the type species, M. occatoria 
Walckenaer as it is currently defined, appears to 
have several other species confused with it. 
Main (1985) recognised seven species. Synonymy 
there of M. rugosum Ausserer with M. occatoria 
Walckenaer was perhaps in error and I now 
tentatively reinstate M. rugosum. 
Regardless of the taxonomic confusion of the 
nominal species it is apparent from my field 
observations and an abundance of specimens 
(mainly males) in museums that there are many 
undescribed species. Richard Faulder is currently 
reviewing the genus and preparing redescriptions 
of those species recognised by him. 
This paper provides a description of a new 
species from west of Albany, south western 
Australia. Female specimens from the Albany 
coastal region cannot unequivocally be associated 
with the male specimens on which establishment 
of the new species is based because another species 
with distinctive males (having red chelicerae) 
occurs also in the same area. 
Abbreviations: BYM, Barbara York Main collec¬ 
tion (housed in the Zoology Department, Univer¬ 
sity of Western Australia); WAM, Western Austra¬ 
lian Museum. 
SYSTEMATICS 
Missulena torbayensis sp. nov. 
Figures 1, 2; Table 1 
Material examined 
Holotype 
d, Rutherwood Road/South Coast Highway 
(Highway 1), Torbay, Nature Reserve, Western 
Australia, Australia, 16 June 1983 , B.Y. Main, alive 
in pitfall trap (BYM 1983/140; WAM 1995/2). 
Para types 
Australia: Western Australia: All collected from 
pitfall traps. 1 d, data as for holotype, 20 June 1983- 
3 July 1983, (BYM 1983/143; WAM 1995/4); Id, 
West Cape Howe National Park, near granite dome 
above Dingo Beach, B.Y. Main, 4—26 August 1984 
(BYM 1984/82); Id, West Cape Howe National 
Park, heath at eastern edge Lake William, B.Y. 
Main, 25 May 1985-13 June 1985 (BYM 1985/83; 
WAM 1995/3); Id, West Cape Howe National 
Park, karri/peppermint grove southwest of Lake 
William, B.Y. Main, 16 April 1987-12 May 1987 
(BYM 1987/12). 
Other Material 
Australia: Western Australia: Id, Manjimup, 
34°155'S, 116°09'E, 19 May 1976, J.D. Majer, pitfall 
trap (WAM 93/1698) (tentative identification); Id, 
Shannon River at Nelson Road 34°43'S, 116°21'E, 
M.S. Harvey and M.E. Blosfelds, 16-18 February 
1990 (WAM 92/293) (tentative identification). 
