Letter: Description of Two Cases of Spider Bites Attributed to Loxosceles rufescens (Araneae, Sicariidae) in Albania

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  Letter: Description of Two Cases of Spider Bites Attributed to Loxosceles rufescens (Araneae, Sicariidae) in Albania Fewer than 0.5% of spider species are medically significant, with the genus  Loxosceles  responsible for most dermonecrotic envenomings. 1 , 2  In the Mediterranean,  Loxosceles rufescens  is the primary species associated with loxoscelism. 2  This synanthropic spider thrives in human dwellings, typically biting only when inadvertently provoked. 1 , 3 , 4  Its venom, containing sphingomyelinase D, triggers local inflammation and necrosis, 1 , 5  and rarer the acute localized exanthematous pustulosis. 6  Diagnosis is often challenged by initial painlessness, leading to frequent misidentification as bacterial infections. 2 , 4 , 5  These cases in Albania highlight the need for improved clinical recognition of regional spider-bite occurrences. 7 Two cases were retrospectively documented via interviews and photos. Infor...

Spider Recording Scheme News Summer 2024, No. 109

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Review of the Spiders Recorded  (2015–2023) and Harvestmen of Watsonian County Durham and Northumberland

Introduction 

The following article represents the third review covering spider recording in Watsonian County Durham (vicecounty 66) and Northumberland (vice-counties 67 and 68), collectively referred to in this series as north-east England. The two previous articles separately covered County Durham (Wilson, 2018) and Northumberland (Wilson, 2015); whereas this article covers all three VCs combined because of limited recording effort in this region. The previous two reviews focussed solely on the spiders (Araneae) whereas this, for the first time so far as the author is aware, provides an overview of the harvestmen (Opiliones) fauna of the three vice-counties. 

Spider Recording Scheme News Summer 2024, No. 109 SRS website: http://srs.britishspiders.org.uk