Species diversity in the supposedly monotypic genus Amblyocarenum Simon, 1892, with the description of a new species from Sardinia (Araneae, Mygalomorphae, Cyrtaucheniidae)

The supposed monotypy of the trapdoor spider genus
Amblyocarenum Simon, 1892 is reassessed and rejected.
Qualitative and quantitative morphological differences in both
males and females are distinguished in samples collected on
Sardinia and Sicily, respectively, indicating the existence of at
least two distinct Amblyocarenum species in these two regions.
The study of smaller, less representative samples from southwest
Italy, Algeria, and Spain also suggest the existence of
distinct, although morphologically difficult to distinguish,
Amblyocarenum species in other geographical regions of the
western Mediterranean. Here, we describe a new species, A.
nuragicus n. sp., from Sardinia. Detailed field observations and
photographic work provide additional new information about
this new species. More intensive sampling and the use of more
inclusive research methods (molecular, geographic, ecological
and ethological) are advocated in order to clarify the extant
species diversity of the genus Amblyocarenum.