Variaciones intraespecíficas del aparato reproductor en hembras de la especie Latrodectus garbae

Abstract

The genus of spiders Latrodectus commonly known as “black widow”, “guinea pigs” or “capuline spider”; It is easily recognized by its ventral pattern on the “hourglass”-shaped opisthosoma, although variations may occur in some species. It is part of the six genera of medical importance since its venom is composed of the enzyme α-latrotoxin, which has affinity for the presynaptic receptors of mammals. The genus Latrodectus presents great morphological variability in somatic and sexual structures in males and females, which has been a problem for the identification and classification of the species; For this reason, this work aims to identify the morphological variation of the genitalia of females of the endemic Colombian species Latrodectus garbae, where the use of allometric measurements and transparency techniques of 65 specimens demonstrated variations in the epigynum that We describe in detail in this work. Likewise, it is possible to highlight the importance of describing for the first time the variations in reproductive structures that, although they have been reported, there are no published studies that show statistical data on the variations in a single species.