A Synoptic Review Of North American, Central American, And West Indian Solpugida (Arthropoda: Arachnida)

Solpugids or wind scorpions are large ferocious and voracious predatory arachnids that range in size from about one-half inch to over four inches in length . The largest North ,American species is slightly less than three inches long. Despite their imposing appearance, these curious arachnids are harmless to man. They possess no poison glands, and most species, although they bite viciously, are incapable of breaking the skin and drawing blood. A few large forms in the southwestern United States and Mexico are reported to inflict open wounds and bleeding but with no secondary effects.

Species found in the western hemisphere are predominately nocturnal, with only a few small forms reportedly active during the daylight hours. They are burrowing animals that spend the daylight hours and winter months in specially constructed burrows or nests in the ground. A few species burrow into soft, pithy, or rotten wood. Most solpugids feed readily on t ermites but are capable of eating spiders, flies, cockroaches, crickets, grasshoppers, beetles, moths, and even earthworms. Certain large species capture and eat large hard-bodied beetles and hawk moths. The life cycle, from egg to adult, of North American solpugids is about one year, involving nine immature stages.

This S·ynoptic Review of North American, Central American, and West Indian Solpugida is the fifth in the series of publications known as the ARTHROPODS OF FLORIDA AND NEIGHBORING LAND AREAS. The areas include the southeastern United States and the islands of and land areas encompassing the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea. The present paper not only delineates and characterizes the solpugid species that are found in these relevant areas but also relates these species to the more northerly and westerly Nearctic forms of the order. Further, this Synopsis synthesizes the studies of C. L. Koch ( 1842), Simon ( 1879) , Putnam (1883), Banks (1900) , Kraepelin (1901), Roewer (1934), and Muma (1951) into a comprehensive presentation of presently known solpugids in the study area.

This survey is the first comprehensive work on the North and Central American and West Indian fauna of Solpugida. It was made possible by intensive study of types in European museums, supported by a National Science Foundation grant, with resultant synonymy and emendation of many names. It represents the basic work after which monographic. studies of the Mexican and Central American faunas can be attempted. Through the years, Dr. Muma has become the world authority on our distinctive fauna and the American Museum the principal depository of the material. In 1951, the American Museum published Muma’s revisional study of the Solpugida of the United States, an important paper giving us for the first time a clear picture of our relatively large fauna. This basic work resulted from sound studies on the morphology and laid the foundation for all succeeding work on the group.

The author, Martin H. Muma, was born in Topeka, Kansas, July 24, 1916. His professional training was obtained at Western Maryland College Extension Night School (1933-34), Frostburg State Teachers College (1935-36), and the University of Maryland ( 1936-43). He received his B.S. degree in 1939, his M.S. in 1940, and his Ph.D. in 1943. From 1940 to 1945 he served as an Instructor in Entomology and Assistant Entomologist at the University of Maryland; from 1945 to 1951 he was Extension Entomologist and then Associate Entomologist, Associate Professor, and Associate Curator of the museum at the University of Nebraska.

Since 1951 he has been an Associate Entomologist, Associate Professor, Entomologist, and Professor at the University of Florida Citrus Experiment Station located near Lake Alfred, Florida. His present projects involve research on the taxonomy, biology, and natural control of citrus mites, the natural and ecological control of injurious citrus insects and the biological control potential for the Caribbean Fruit Fly. Although Dr. Muma’s formal education and official professional experience have been in the field of entomology, his favorite avocationa! fields are arachnology and speleology. In entomology he has investigated and contributed to the taxonomy, biology, ecology, and control of deciduous fruit insects, field crop insects, livestock parasites, and citrus insects. In arachnology he has studied and contributed to the taxonomy, biology, and ecology of mites, spiders, tarantulas, scorpions, whip-scorpions, and solpugids. In speleology he has examined and contributed to cave biology, cave ecology, and cave termiiv nology. He is the author of a book, “Common Spiders of Maryland,” and the author or coauthor of 143 scientific bulletins or papers, 47 in entomology, 63 in arachnology, 21 in extension