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The Biogeography and Conservation Ecology of the Trapdoor Spider Genus Cantuaria Hogg, 1902

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The Biogeography and Conservation Ecology of the Trapdoor Spider Genus Cantuaria Hogg, 1902 Lincoln University Digital Thesis Copyright Statement The digital copy of this thesis is protected by the Copyright Act 1994 (New Zealand). This thesis may be consulted by you, provided you comply with the provisions of the Act and the following conditions of use: you will use the copy only for the purposes of research or private study you will recognise the author's right to be identified as the author of the thesis and due acknowledgement will be made to the author where appropriate you will obtain the author's permission before publishing any material from the thesis. An Unexpected Journey: the Biogeography and Conservation Ecology of the Trapdoor Spider Genus Cantuaria Hogg, 1902 A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Lincoln University by Victoria Rose Smith Lincoln University 2016 Abstract of a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Abstract The Biogeography and Conservation Ecology of the Trapdoor Spider Genus Cantuaria Hogg, 1902 by Victoria Rose Smith The genus Cantuaria consists of 42 currently recognised species, all of which are endemic to New Zealand (NZ). Cantuaria spiderlings build their burrows near to their mothers, and usually remain there for life. Cantuaria’s sedentary life history is at odds with its distribution, which reaches from Stewart Island up to Whanganui. Cantuaria’s sister genus Misgolas Karsch, 1878 is found in Australia. In this thesis, I used a dated multilocus Bayesian phylogeny to reconstruct [1] when the most recent common ancestor (MRCA) of Cantuaria diverged from Misgolas, and [2] the distribution history of Cantuaria within NZ. My results showed that Cantuaria and Misgolas shared a MRCA as recently as 18 million years ago, indicating long distance dispersal in Cantuaria’s biogeographic history. However, there was also evidence to suggest that vicariant geographic barriers interrupt dispersal, as species to the east and west of the Southern Alps share a most recent common ancestor approximately 5-8 million years ago. The genus appears to have originated in the southern part of the South Island, before moving gradually northwards. Cantuaria phylogenies were used to delimit species using the Poisson tree process, and 12 new species are described. Morphology and phylogeny do not concur, and geographic location combined with DNA are the most reliable methods for identifying Cantuaria species. Due to Cantuaria species’ small populations (defined as a semi-isolated individual or group of individuals) and lack of dispersal ability, I hypothesised that they would be susceptible to habitat loss and disturbance. My research investigated how different types of habitat and disturbance affect Cantuaria population presence/absence. I also assessed the threats that may be facing individual populations. A taxon that is easily susceptible to changing environmental parameters may be less likely to survive and colonise new territory after a long-distance ocean crossing. My results show that Cantuaria, surprisingly, are able to breed and reproduce in a variety of habitat types, but they are found less often in areas with very high rainfall, and in high elevation areas. Some populations appear to contain very few individuals, and may be ii threatened by habitat destruction. The threats to Cantuaria populations include climate change (which may increase rainfall in some areas) and urbanisation. A meta-analysis of biogeographical research from the last decade for all taxa investigated the factors that may affect a species’ biogeographic history in NZ and found no evidence to suggest that characteristics, such as dispersal ability, affect a species’ biogeographical history over evolutionary time. Keywords: Biogeography, Idiopidae, idiopids, Mygalomorphae, mygalomorphs, ancient, dispersal, vicariance, random forest, niche modelling, beetling, Oligocene drowning, Oligocene iii Acknowledgements The last three years were never unenjoyable. I can attribute the good humour that I felt throughout my PhD entirely to the excellent support that I had from supervisors, funders, and my friends. First I thank my supervisory team, Adrian Paterson, Rob Cruickshank, Emily Fountain and Cor Vink, for giving me free rein over this project. They were there if I had questions or needed help, but I had a great deal of freedom to explore and research in my own way. Myles Mackintosh was a fantastic support to the project, going above and beyond his job with seemingly effortless efficiency. This work was funded by a generous fellowship from the Miss E L Hellaby Indigenous Grasslands Research Trust. The Mohamad Bin Zayed Species Conservation Trust, Lincoln University, Gordon Williams, Otago Museum, and the Brian Mason Trust all provided grants towards the completion of this research, for which I am most grateful. My family was supportive throughout my PhD; thank you. My friends, including Dave and Shirley Lawry, became a different sort of family. Thanks to Rob Lawry for his friendship, help, and excellent ability to handle falcons and many different species of roadkill. My good friend Nathan Curtis provided me with a sense of perspective, and some stability in the form of a place to live. Thanks also to the games group Tim, Laura, and Sam for making Fridays awesome. Johannes Welsch was a frequent reminder that one can undertake a PhD journey in style, and that there is always time for a nice cup of coffee and a sit down. iv Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................. iv Table of Contents ................................................................................................................................. v List of Tables ....................................................................................................................................... vii List of Figures ..................................................................................................................................... viii Chapter 1 Thesis context ..................................................................................................................1 1.1 Research aims................................................................................................................................. 2 Chapter 2 General introduction ...................................................................................................... 3 2.1 New Zealand biogeography......................................................................................................... 3 2.2 Mygalomorphs as model organisms for studying biogeography ......................................... 3 2.3 The genus Cantuaria ..................................................................................................................... 4 Chapter 3 New Zealand biogeography ........................................................................................ 10 3.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 10 3.1.1 Research aim and objectives/ research questions ................................................... 14 3.2 Methods .......................................................................................................................................... 15 3.3 Results .............................................................................................................................................16 3.4 Discussion .................................................................................................................................... 20 Chapter 4 Beetling: a method for catching trapdoor spiders (Idiopidae) using tethered beetles ............................................................................................................................................ 27 4.1 Introduction .................................................................................................................................. 27 4.2 Methods ......................................................................................................................................... 28 4.2.1 Beetles .............................................................................................................................. 28 4.2.2 Identifying burrows....................................................................................................... 30 4.2.3 Attracting a spider ......................................................................................................... 30 4.2.4 Collecting .......................................................................................................................... 31 4.3 Results ............................................................................................................................................. 31 4.3.1 Collecting success ........................................................................................................... 31 4.4 Discussion ..................................................................................................................................... 32 4.4.1 Beetle positioning ..........................................................................................................
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