Biodiversity Data Journal 11: e99304 CO) doi: 10.3897/BDJ.11.e99304 open access Data Paper Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Nina Polchaninova?, Oleksii Marushchak$ $ V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, Kharkiv, Ukraine § |. |. Schmalhauzen Institute of Zoology, NAS of Ukraine, Kyiv, Ukraine Corresponding author: Oleksii Marushchak (ecopelobates@gmail.com) Academic editor: Dmitry Schigel Received: 26 Dec 2022 | Accepted: 30 Jan 2023 | Published: 03 Feb 2023 Citation: Polchaninova N, Marushchak O (2023) Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine). Biodiversity Data Journal 11: e99304. https://doi.org/10.3897/BDJ.11.e99304 Abstract Background The dataset contains records of spiders collected in the northeast of Luhansk Oblast in the periods 1982-1989, 2009-2011 and 2021. It aimed at the inventory of spider fauna of the Striltsivskyi Steppe Nature Reserve and species distribution in the main grassland and forest habitats of the region. The research was also concerned with the impact of conservation management — hay mowing or strict protection and man-induced steppe fire on spider communities. New information The dataset includes records from seven geographical localities in the northeast of Luhansk Oblast with 1,955 occurrences of 6662 individuals. For the first time, it provides detailed information about spider species composition, phenology and habitat distiribution within the study area, including two conservation areas and the primary material on the studies on the impact of hay making and steppe fire on spider communities. All the records of 246 spider species with georeferencing were published in GBIF. © Polchaninova N, Marushchak O. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. 2 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Keywords Arachnida, conservation management, diversity, protected areas, arachnofauna, steppe region Introduction The lands of the Starobilsk Raion of the Luhansk Region, like the whole steppe zone of Ukraine, are highly transformed by human economic activity. The ploughing campaign was launched there in the 1930s and resulted in nearly all natural steppes being converted into agricultural fields. Now zonal forb-fescue-feather grass steppes on the flat interfluves are extant only in the Striltsivskyi Steppe Nature Reserve. Nevertheless, due to the rolling relief and the horse breeding developed in the late 17'° — early 20" century, the Starobilsk Steppes are less ploughed than the southern Ukrainian steppes (Borovyk 2018). Remains of the virgin steppes, intensively grazed up to the 1990s, have been preserved on the gully slopes and bottoms. Natural arboreal and shrub vegetation forms narrow strips along the river banks and small patchy forests and shrub thickets in the gullies. The vegetation of the Starobilsk steppes was investigated first in 1926-1927 (Lavrenko and Dokhman 1933). Subsequently, it has been constantly monitored since the establishment of the Striltsivskyi Steppe protected area, now a department of the Luhansk Nature Reserve (Tkachenko 2009). In contrast, invertebrates were studied at irregular intervals, only some groups of beetles (Glotov 2021) and mites (Yaroshenko and Schtirts 2008) having been sampled thoroughly and analysed. Since various groups of organisms respond differently to the impact of natural and anthropogenic factors, comprehensive multitaxon studies are of critical importance for understanding changes in local biota, assessment of conservation effects (Margules and Pressey 2000, Braby and Williams 2016) and development of optimal management plans of protected areas and ecologically friendly farming (Batary et al. 2012). Being abundant and diverse predators, spiders play an important role in trophic webs (Wise 1993, Mallis and Hurd 2005). They have various ecological traits and inhabit all vegetation layers in nearly all terrestrial habitats. Spiders’ diversity and ecological role make them a suitable model group for bioindication (Marc et al. 1999, Zografou et al. 2017, Cabrero-Sanudo et al. 2022). Arachnological research in the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast was launched by the first author (NP) in the 1980s. Before that, only one locality in the southeast of the Oblast (Provllia Village, at that time Don Host Area) was investigated and a list of 55 species was published (Greze 1909). In 1982-1989, the studies aimed at the inventory of spider fauna of the Striltsivskyi Steppe department of the Luhansk Nature Reserve and clarifying the impact of mowing management on spider assemblages (Polchaninova 1990a, Polchaninova 1995, Polchaninova 2012a). Hereinafter, E. Prokopenko (Donetsk National University, Ukraine) continued spider inventory (Prokopenko 2001) and the results were summarised in a survey of the state of knowledge of the spider fauna of Ukrainian steppe Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) 3 reserves (Polchaninova and Prokopenko 2007) and in the spider checklist of the Lunhansk Nature Reserve (Polchaninova and Prokopenko 2011). In total, 334 spider species of 28 families were recorded from the Reserve, with 190 species registered in the Striltsivskyi Steppe. After the devastating fire of 2008 that destroyed all vegetation in the Reserve and its vicinity, arachnological studies were focused on the effect of large-scale steppe fires on spider communities (Polchaninova 2013a, Polchaninova 2013b, Polchaninova 2015, Zografou et al. 2017). In addition, the study localities were expanded to collect spiders in other habitats typical of the region (chalk grasslands, clayey slopes, forests in the gullies, pine plantations etc.). The obtained data on spider inventory and species habitat preferences were included in the Catalogue of Spiders of Left-Bank Ukraine (Polchaninova and Prokopenko 2013, Polchaninova and Prokopenko 2017) and used for the comparison of the spider faunas of various steppe reserves (Polchaninova 1990b, Polchaninova 2012b , Prokopenko and Polchaninova 2017, Polchaninova 2021). At present, 223 spider species are known from the Striltsivskyi Steppe Reserve; other 23 species listed in the catalogue were found outside its territory. This is more than half of the species recorded from the Luhansk Oblast (402 species) (Polchaninova and Prokopenko 2019). Twelve recorded species are rare in Ukraine and 16 species are rare or patchily distributed in the study area. They can serve as bioindicators to determine areas of conservation concern. General description Purpose: The presented data will contribute to the understanding of the spider fauna of eastern Ukraine, assessment of the effectiveness of conservation management in protected areas and identification of the sites of conservation concern. Moreover, the research on spider post-fire recovery will serve as a basis for evaluating the aftermath of hostilities that arose due to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Project description Title: “Northern Eurasia 2022” Sampling methods Description: The dataset is based on the records of spiders from the northern and north- eastern parts of the Luhansk Oblast of Ukraine. The study sites are located in the vicinities of the villages of Novobila, Taniushivka, Zorykivka, Striltsivka, Velykotsk, Krynychne and Horodyshche of the Starobilsk Raion (Fig. 1). A long-term stationary investigation was conducted only in the Striltsivskyi Steppe Department of the Luhansk Nature Reserve and adjacent territory (near Krynychne Village) in two periods: 1982-1989 and 2009-2011. The study sites near Zorykivka and Velykotsk were investigated during one field season (May— September) in 2009 and 2011, respectively, the Kreidovi Vidslonennia Botanical Preserve 4 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O of Local Importance (Striltsivka) was sampled in May—August 2011 and September— October 2021. Other localities were visited only once for ad-hoc collection. The dataset provides 1955 occurrences of 6662 recorded individuals (Polchaninova 2022). In total (excluding iNaturalist), there are only 5,561 occurrences of spiders from Ukraine in GBIF (Gbif.org 2022), so this dataset comprises about one-third of the information published in this format. Eleven types of habitats were investigated: forb-fescue-feather grass steppe on the flat interfluves and the gully slopes, meadow-like vegetation at the gully bottoms, chalk hills with calcareous vegetation, clayey gully slopes with xerophytic steppe vegetation, pasture on mesic floodplain meadows, abandoned fields, river banks with riparian vegetation, forest shelterbelts, pine forest plantations, bairak forests and their edges (semi- natural forests covering gully bottoms and slopes in the south of the Forest-Steppe and the north of the Steppe zone) and synanthropic habitats. The habitat types are adopted from the National Habitat Catalogue of Ukraine (Kuzemko et al. 2018). Depending on the research targets (faunal inventory or impact of disturbance factors), we arranged 32 sampling plots, the greatest attention being paid to the steppe biotopes (Table 1). In the Nature Reserve, the sampling took into account topography and_ conservation management of the study plot (strictly protected or mowed steppe) that is specified in Table 1. We also marked with the letter B the sampling localities in Striltsivskyi Steppe burnt in August 2008. In the Table of species habitat distribution (Table 2), we combined in one column shelter forest belts+forest edges as ecotone habitats and pine plantations+bairak forests as the forest ones. Table 1. Sampling plots. Longitude Latitude Locality Habitats Sampling year 49.29750 40.07278 Krynychne strictly protected (unmowed steppe) on the flat 1982-1989, 2009, interfluves B 2011 49.29722 40.07139 Krynychne periodically mowed steppe on a gully slope; mowing was_ 1982-1989, 2009, ceased in the 1990s B 2011 49.29000 40.08722 Krynychne periodically mowed steppe on the flat interfluves B 2009, 2011 49.28333 40.08061 Krynychne periodically mowed steppe on a gully slope B 2009 49.29694 40.07000 Krynychne B gully bottom with meadow-steppe vegetation 1982-1989, 2009, 2011 49.29278 40.08806 Krynychne B gully bottom with meadow-steppe vegetation 2009, 2011 49.29611 40.06611 Krynychne abandoned field B 2011 49.30222 40.06833 Krynychne chalk slope B 1982-1989, 2009 49.30389 40.07722 Krynychne pasture on the floodplain meadow and adjacent steppe 1982-1989, 2009 slopes 49.30694 40.08389 Krynychne riverbank with arboreal and herbaceous vegetation 1982-1989, 2009 49.30083 40.07028 Krynychne forest shelterbelt 1982-1989 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Longitude Latitude Locality Habitats Sampling year 49.30083 40.69333 Krynychne country house 1982-1989 49.29475 40.03912 Krynychne edge of a bairak forest 2009, 2011 49.29422 40.04094 Krynychne Caragana thickets on the top of a slope 2009 49.29433 40.04345 Krynychne the slope of a steppe gully, gully bottom 2009 49.29422 40.04094 Krynychne abandoned field 2009 49.31364 40.04066 Velykotsk clayey slope 2011 49.31364 40.04066 Velykotsk gully bottom 2011 49.37433 39.97010 Velykotsk bairak forest 2009 49.38804 39.77307 Zorykivka pine plantation 2009 49.39184 39.80012 Zorykivka steppe on a gully slope 2009 49.38561 39.87377 Zorykovka bairak forest and forest edge 2009 49.38914 39.81055 Zorykivka gully bottom 2009 49.38724 39.81557 Zorykivka chalk slope 2009 49.28806 39.85083 Striltsivka chalk slope and gully bottom 2009, 2021 49.04018 39.63299 Horodyshche steppe on a gully slope 1989 49.05027 39.65027 Horodyshche forest plantation 1989 49.04916 39.65527 Horodyshche riverbank 1989 49.05666 39.64750 Horodyshche chalk slope 1989 49.76270 38.9309 Taniushivka _ bairak forest 2009 49.76270 38.93090 Taniushivka steppe gully 2009 49.76861 39.18805 Novobila steppe on a slope, mesic meadow 2009 Table 2. The list of spider species, their habitat distribution and the number of collected individuals in the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast: 1 — forb-fescue-feather grass steppe on the flat interfluves and gully slopes (including abandoned fields on various stages of vegetation succession); 2 — meadow steppe in the gully bottoms; 3 — chalk slopes; 4 — clayey slopes; 5 — pasture in the floodplain meadow; 6 — forest edges and shelterbelts; 7 — bairak forest and forest plantation; 8 — riverbank; 9 — synanthropic habitats. Families/Species Types of habitats 1 2 3.1/4 [5 {6 |7 8 |9 Fam. Agelenidae Agelena labyrinthica (Clerck, 1757) 2 4 1 Agelenopsis potteri (Blackwall, 1846) 3 Families/Species 1 Allagelena gracilens (C. L. Koch, 1841) Eratigena agrestis (Walckenaer, 1802) Fam. Anyphaenidae Anyphaena accentuata (Walckenaer, 1802) Fam. Araneidae Agalenatea redii (Scopoli, 1763) 28 Araneus alsine (Walckenaer, 1802) Araneus diadematus Clerck, 1757 Araneus quadratus Clerck, 1757 3 Araniella cucurbitina (Clerck, 1757) 3 Araniella displicata (Hentz, 1847) 2 Argiope bruennichi (Scopoli, 1772) 34 Cercidia prominens (Westring, 1851) 7 Cyclosa conica (Pallas, 1772) Cyclosa oculata (Walckenaer, 1802) 4 Gibbaranea bituberculata (Walckenaer, 1802) Gibbaranea ullrichi (Hahn, 1835) Hypsosinga sanguinea (C. L. Koch, 1844) 4 Hypsosinga albovittata (Westring, 1851) Hypsosinga pygmaea (Sundevall, 1831) Larinioides suspicax (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1876) Mangora acalypha (Walckenaer, 1802) 67 Neoscona adianta (Walckenaer, 1802) 38 Singa hamata (Clerck, 1757) 19 Singa nitidula C. L. Koch, 1844 Zilla diodia (Walckenaer, 1802) Fam. Atypidae Atypus muralis Bertkau, 1890 4 Atypus piceus (Sulzer, 1776) Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Types of habitats 15 10 23 39 19 12 12 11 13 14 21 27 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Families/Species Types of habitats 4 Fam. Cheiracanthiidae Cheiracanthium elegans Thorell, 1875 Cheiracanthium erraticum (Walckenaer, 1802) 2 Cheiracanthium pennyi O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1873 30 Cheiracanthium punctorium (Villers, 1789) 6 Cheiracanthium virescens (Sundevall, 1833) 1 Fam. Clubionidae Clubiona caerulescens L.Koch, 1867 Clubiona frutetorum L. Koch, 1867 1 Clubiona lutescens Westring, 1851 Clubiona neglecta O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1862 1 Clubiona pallidula (Clerck, 1757) Clubiona pseudoneglecta Wunderlich, 1994 3 Clubiona stagnatilis Kulczynski, 1897 Clubiona subtilis L. Koch, 1867 1 Fam. Dictynidae Brigittea latens (Fabricus, 1775) 40 Dictyna arundinacea (Linnaeus, 1758) 58 Dictyna uncinata Thorell, 1856 Lathys humilis (Blackwall, 1855) Fam. Eresidae Eresus sp. Fam. Gnaphosidae Berlandina cinerea (Menge, 1872) 3 Callilepis nocturna (Linnaeus, 1758) Civizelotes pygmaeus (Miller, 1943) Drassodes pubescens (Thorell, 1856) 16 Drassyllus lutetianus (L. Koch, 1866) Drassyllus praeficus (L. Koch, 1866) 11 35 15 18 5s 16> kz 4 5 1 3 2 1 2 1 4 14 8 3 2 8 1 1 |1 4 1 3 2 4 Families/Species Drassyllus pumilus (C.L. Koch, 1839) Drassyllus pusillus (C. L. Koch, 1833) Drassyllus villicus (Thorell, 1875) Drassyllus vinealis (Kulczyn'ski, 1897) Gnaphosa dolosa O. Herman, 1879 Gnaphosa leporina (L. Koch, 1866) Gnaphosa licenti Schenkel, 1953 Gnaphosa lugubris (C. L. Koch, 1839) Gnaphosa steppica Ovtscharenko, Platnick & Song, 1992 Gnaphosa taurica Thorell, 1875 Haplodrassus dalmatensis (L. Koch, 1866) Haplodrassus kulczynskii Lohmander, 1942 Haplodrassus minor (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1879) Haplodrassus signifer (C. L. Koch, 1839) Haplodrassus silvestris (Blackwall, 1833) Haplodrassus umbratilis (L. Koch, 1866) Marinarozelotes malckini (Platnick & Murphy, 1984) Micaria bosmansi Kovblyuk & Nadolny, 2008 Micaria dives (Lucas, 1846) Micaria formicaria (Sundevall, 1831) Micaria fulgens (Walckenaer, 1802) Micaria pulicaria (Sundevall, 1831) Micaria rossica Thorell, 1875 Phaeocedus braccatus (L. Koch, 1866) Poecilochroa variana (C. L. Koch, 1839) Zelotes electus (C. L. Koch, 1839) Zelotes fuscus (Thorell, 1875) Zelotes latreillei (Simon, 1878) Zelotes longipes (L. Koch, 1866) Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Types of habitats 1 159 31 79 39 12 64 69 57 22 49 31 12 21 6 7 1 5 10 ae ES: 1 13 10 1 4 1 1 9 2 1 |2 32 11 1 2 4 3 2 2 2 3 9 1 4 17 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Families/Species 1 Zelotes petrensis (C. L. Koch, 1839) Zelotes pseudogallicus Ponomarev, 2007 11 Zelotes segrex (Simon, 1878) Fam. Hahniidae Hahnia ononidum Simon, 1875 Hahnia pusilla C. L. Koch, 1841 Fam. Linyphiidae Abacoproeces saltuum (L. Koch,1872) Agyneta fuscipalpa (C. L. Koch, 1836) Agyneta rurestris (C. L. Koch, 1836) 11 Agyneta simplicitarsis (Simon, 1884) 3 Agyneta subtilis (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1863) Centromerus sylvaticus (Blackwall, 1841) Ceratinella brevis (Wieder, 1834) Dactylopisthes mirificus (Georgescu, 1976) 12 Diplocephalus picinus (Blackwall, 1841) Diplostyla concolor (Wider, 1834) Entelecara acuminata (Wider, 1834) Floronia bucculenta (Clerck, 1757) Gnathonarium dentatum (Wider, 1834) Gonatium paradoxum (L. Koch, 1869) Gongylidium rufipes (Linnaeus, 1758) Helophora insignis (Blackwall, 1841) Linyphia hortensis Sundevall, 1830 Linyphia tenuipalpis Simon, 1884 4 Linyphia triangularis (Clerck, 1757) 10 Maso sundevalli (Westring, 1851) Megalepthyphantes pseudocollinus Saaristo, 1997 1 Metopobactrus prominulus (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1873 Types of habitats 18 13 11 34 11 10 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Families/Species Types of habitats 1 Microlinyphia pusilla (Sundevall, 1830) 1 Microneta viaria (Blackwall, 1841) Minicia caspiana Tanasevitch, 1990 3 Neriene clathrata (Sundevall, 1830) Neriene radiata (Walckenaer, 1841) Oedothorax apicatus (Blackwall, 1850) Pelecopsis parallela (Wider, 1834) Pocadicnemis pumila (Blackwall, 1841) 1 Porrhomma sp. Stemonyphantes lineatus (Linnaeus, 1758) 8 Tenuiphantes flavipes (Blackwall, 1854) Trichoncoides piscator (Simon, 1884) 1 Trichoncus vasconicus Denis, 1944 4 Uralophantes ponticus Gnelitsa, 2022 Walckenaeria antica (Wider, 1834) Fam. Liocranidae Agroeca cuprea Menge, 1873 Agroeca lusatica (L. Koch, 1875) Agroeca maculata L. Koch, 1879 23 Fam. Lycosidae Alopecosa cuneata (Clerck, 1757) 197 Alopecosa cursor (Hahn, 1831) 29 Alopecosa farinosa (Herman, 1879) Alopecosa pulverulenta (Clerck, 1757) 93 Alopecosa schmidti (Hahn, 1835) Alopecosa solitaria (Herman, 1879) 20 Alopecosa sulzeri (Pavesi,1873) 16 Alopecosa taeniopus (Kulczynski, 1895) 33 Alopecosa trabalis (Clerck, 1757) 1 121 65 3 3 8 170 2 1 76 19 1 10 44 39 30 14 17 41 11 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Families/Species Arctosa lutetiana (Simon, 1876) Lycosa singoriensis (Laxmann, 1770) Pardosa agrestis (Westring, 1861) Pardosa amentata (Clerck, 1757) Pardosa italica Tongiorgi, 1966 Pardosa lugubris (Walckenaer, 1802) Pardosa paludicola (Clerck, 1757) Pardosa palustris (Linnaeus, 1758) Pardosa prativaga (L. Koch, 1870) Piratula hygrophila (Thorell, 1872) Trochosa robusta (Simon, 1876) Trochosa ruricola (De Geer, 1778) Trochosa terricola Thorell, 1856 Xerolycosa miniata (C. L. Koch, 1834) Fam. Mimetidae Ero aphana (Walckenaer, 1802) Ero furcata (Villers, 1789) Fam. Miturgidae Zora armillata Simon, 1878 Zora nemoralis (Blackwall, 1861) Zora pardalis Simon, 1878 Zora silvestris Kulczynski, 1897 Zora spinimana (Sundevall, 1833) Fam. Oxyopidae Oxyopes heterophthalmus (Latreille, 1804) Fam. Philodromidae Philodromus aureolus (Clerck, 1757) Philodromus cespitum (Walckenaer, 1802) Philodromus dispar Walckenaer, 1826 Types of habitats 1 2 3.4 #5 1 3 3 3 5 24 2 1 7 69 36 |1 |7 |4 2 79 162 6 150 48 13 1 1 4 3 2 1 3 6 32 9 1 38 27 159 46 23 12 10 11 12 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Families/Species Philodromus emarginatus (Schrank, 1803) Rhysodromus histrio (Latreille, 1819) Thanatus arenarius L. Koch, 1872 Thanatus sabulosus (Menge, 1875) Tibellus macellus Simon, 1875 Tibellus maritimus (Menge, 1875) Tibellus oblongus (Walckenaer, 1802) Fam. Pholcidae Pholcus ponticus Thorell, 1875 Fam. Phrurolithidae Phrurolithus festivus (C. L. Koch, 1835) Phrurolithus pullatus Kulczynski, 1897 Fam. Pisauridae Pisaura novicia (L. Koch, 1878) Fam. Salticidae Aelurillus laniger Logunov & Marusik, 2000 Aelurillus v-insignitus (Clerck, 1757) Asianellus festivus (C. L. Koch, 1834) Attulus dzieduszykii (L. Koch, 1870) Attulus floricola (C. L. Koch, 1837) Ballus chalybeius (Walckenaer, 1802) Carrhotus xanthogramma (Latreille, 1819) Chalcoscirtus nigritus (Thorell, 1875) Euophrys frontalis (Walckenaer, 1802) Evarcha arcuata (Clerck, 1757) Evarcha falcata (Clerck, 1757) Evarcha laetabunda (C. L. Koch, 1846) Evarcha michailovi Logunov, 1992 Heliophanus auratus C. L. Koch, 1835 Types of habitats 1 187 19 29 19 18 30 23 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Families/Species Heliophanus cupreus (Walckenaer, 1802) Heliophanus flavipes (Hahn, 1832) Marpissa muscosa (Clerck, 1757) Myrmarachne formicaria (De Geer, 1778) Neon rayi (Simon, 1875) Pellenes nigrociliatus (Simon, 1875) Philaeus chrysops (Poda, 1761) Phlegra fasciata (Hahn, 1826) Pseudicius encarpatus (Walckenaer, 1802) Salticus scenicus (Clerck, 1757) Sibianor aurocinctus (Ohlert, 1865) Synageles hilarulus (C. L. Koch, 1846) Synageles subcingulatus (Simon, 1878) Talavera aequipes (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1871) Fam. Sparassidae Micrommata virescens (Clerck, 1757) Fam. Tetragnathidae Metellina segmentata (Clerck, 1757) Pachygnatha clercki Sundevall, 1823 Pachygnatha degeeri Sundevall, 1830 Tetragnatha extensa (Linnaeus, 1758) Tetragnatha montana Simon, 1874 Fam. Theridiidae Asagena phalerata (Panzer, 1801) Crustulina guttata (Wider, 1834) Enoplognatha ovata (Clerck, 1757) Enoplognatha thoracica (Hahn, 1833) Euryopis quinqueguttata Thorell, 1875 Euryopis saukea Levi, 1951 Types of habitats 1 5 26 21 14 11 15 13 20 26 13 14 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Families/Species Heterotheridion nigrovariegatum (Simon, 1873) Lasaeola tristis (Hahn, 1833) Neottiura bimaculata (Linnaeus, 1767) Neottiura suaveolens (Simon, 1880) Phylloneta impressa (L. Koch, 1881) Platnickina tincta (Walckenaer, 1802) Robertus heydemanni Wiehle, 1965 Simitidion simile (C. L. Koch, 1836) Steatoda albomaculata (De Geer, 1778) Steatoda castanea (Clerck, 1757) Theridion innocuum Thorell, 1875 Theridion pinastri L. Koch, 1872 Theridion varians Hahn, 1833 Fam. Thomisidae Ebrechtella tricuspidata (Fabricius, 1775) Heriaeus oblongus Simon, 1918 Misumena vatia (Clerck, 1757) Ozyptila atomaria (Panzer, 1801) Ozyptila praticola (C. L. Koch, 1837) Ozyptila scabricula (Westring, 1851) Ozyptila tuberosa (Thorell, 1875) Pistius truncatus (Pallas, 1772) Psammitis ninnii (Thorell, 1872) Spiracme mongolicus Schenkel, 1963 Spiracme Striatipes L. Koch, 1870 Thomisus onustus Walckenaer, 1805 Tmarus piger (Walckenaer, 1802) Xysticus cristatus (Clerck, 1757) Xysticus kochi Thorell, 1872 Types of habitats 1 6 11 20 18 14 33 51 12 12 12 10 Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Families/Species Types of habitats 1 2 3/4 15 |6 |7 Xysticus laetus Thorell, 1875 4 1 Xysticus lanio C. L. Koch, 1835 1 Xysticus luctator L. Koch, 1870 10 Xysticus marmoratus Thorell, 1875 2 Xysticus ulmi (Hahn, 1831) 1 Fam. Titanoecidae Titanoeca schineri L. Koch, 1872 1 Fam. Uloboridae Uloborus walckenaerius Latreille, 1806 4 1 10 Figure 1. EES] Map of collecting localities in the northeast of Luhansk Oblast: 1 - Taniushivka, 2 - Novobila, 3 - Zorykivka, 4 - Striltsivka, 5 - Velykotsk, 6 - Horodyshche, 7 - Krynychne, site of stationary monitoring the Striltsivskyi Steppe department of the Luhansk Nature Reserve and its vicinity. 16 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O Sampling description: Spiders were collected by standard collecting methods: sweep netting, pitfall trapping, quadrat sampling and by hand. Plastic cups of 6.5 cm diameter were used as traps and 4% formalin was used for preservation. At each study plot, we set a line of 10 traps at a 10 m distance. The traps were exposed for 3—5 days once per month in the study period 1982-1989. In 2009-2011, the traps were checked approximately once a month from early May to early July and from September to October. Sweep netting was conducted with a 30-cm diameter entomological net, three to five samples of 50 sweeps per plot/month. The quadrat sampling was performed by collecting spiders by hand from 25 x 25 cm plots on the ground and in the litter and thatch. The number of individuals given in the dataset can be normalised to 100 trap-days, other sampling efforts are not specified. The hand collecting was only qualitative. Quality control: The collected spiders were preserved in 70% ethanol and identified by the first author (NP). Taxonomy nomenclature follows the World Spider Catalog (http:// wsc.nmbe.ch, accessed 10.11.2022). The material is deposited in N. Polchaninova’s private collection (Kharkiv, Ukraine). 1. Step description: Field expeditions to the study sites. 2. Establishing a line of ten traps at a distance of 10 m at each study plot. 3. Regular checking of the traps. 4. Sweep netting conducted in the same habitats, three to five samples of 25 double sweeps per plot; hand collecting. 5: Georeferencing with the help of GPS-navigator. 6. Species identification in the laboratory. fe! Organising of a dataset according to Darwin Core standards. Geographic coverage Description: All collecting localities are limited to the Starobilsk Raion of the Luhansk Oblast. Two localities lie in the north of the region, one in the south and the others in the northeast. The area in question is located on the southern spurs of the Central Russian Upland. The climate is moderate continental. In terms of physical-geographical division, the area belongs to the Starobilsk slope-and-upland oblast of the Transdonets-Don krai, of the Northern steppe subzone of the Steppe zone (Marynych et al. 2003). In terms of geo- botanical zoning, it refers to the Siverskyi Donets okrug of the forb-bunchgrass steppes, bairak oak forests and vegetation of the chalk outcrops (tomillares) of the Middle Don subprovince of the Pontic steppe province of the Eurasian steppe region (Didukh and Shelyag-Sosonko 2003). Coordinates: 47.806 and 50.078 Latitude; 37.837 and 40.166 Longitude. Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) 17 Taxonomic coverage Description: The dataset includes records of 6662 spiders belonging to 246 species of 137 genera and 27 families (Table 2). Most individuals were identified at the species level. Taxa included: Rank Scientific Name kingdom Animalia phylum Arthropoda Class Arachnida order Araneae family Araneidae family Agelenidae family Anyphaenidae family Atypidae family Cheiracanthiidae family Clubionidae family Dictynidae family Eresidae family Gnaphosidae family Hahniidae family Lycosidae family Linyphiidae family Liocranidae family Mimetidae family Miturgidae family Oxyopidae family Philodromidae family Pholcidae family Phrurolithidae family Pisauridae family Salticidae family Sparassidae 18 Polchaninova N, Marushchak O family Tetragnathidae family Theridiidae family Thomisidae family Titanoecidae family Uloboridae Temporal coverage Data range: 1982-7-02 - 2021-9-24. Usage licence Usage licence: Open Data Commons Attribution License Data resources Data package title: Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Resource link: https://www.gbif.org/uk/dataset/765d4ecb-a667-4f23-b95e-5254e7140d7e Alternative identifiers: https://doi.org/10.15468/8upy6t Number of data sets: 1 Data set name: Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) Data format: Darwin Core Data format version: 1.9 Column label Column description occurrencelD http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/occurrencelD; an identifier of a particular occurrence, unique within this dataset. The code as made of an English variant of the author's surname, Araneae order and sequence number. basisOfRecord http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/basisOfRecord;the method in which data were acquired. Only "Occurrence" type was used. scientificName http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/scientificName;scientific names of the registered species according to the World Spider Catalogue (WSC 2022) and corrections of some spelling mistakes amd mismatches using GBIF Species Matching tool. scientificNameAuthorship http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/scientificNameAuthorship; the authorship information for the provided scientific name of the registered species. Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) 19 acceptedNameUsage kingdom phylum class order family genus specificEpithet taxonRank decimalLatitude decimalLongitude geodeticDatum http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/acceptedNameUsage;the full name of the currently valid taxon of registered species from Araneae order. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/kingdom; the full scientific name of the kingdom in which the taxon is classified. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/phylum; the full scientific name of the phylum or division in which the taxon is classified. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/class;the full scientific name of the class in which the taxon is classified. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/order; the full scientific name of the order in which the taxon is classified. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/family; the full scientific name of the family in which the taxon is classified. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/genus;the full scientific name of the genus in which the taxon is classified. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/specificEpithet; the name of the first or species epithet of the scientificName. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/taxonRank; the taxonomic rank of the most specific name in the scientificName. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/decimalLatitude; geographic latitude in decimal degrees. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/decimalLongitude; geographic longitude in decimal degrees. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/geodeticDatum;spatial reference system upon which the geographic coordinates are given (WGS84). coordinateUncertaintyInMetres http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/coordinateUncertaintyInMeters; the horizontal distance recordedBy georeferencedBy identifiedBy language verbatinEventDate eventDate (in metres) from the given decimalLatitude and decimalLongitude describing the smallest circle containing the whole of the location. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwe/iri/recordedBy;authorship of the record. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/georeferencedBy;the person, who provided the records with correct coordinates. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/iri/identifiedBy;authorship of the taxon identification. http://purl.org/dc/terms/language; the language of the resource. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/verbatimEventDate;the original form or even date record in the author's notes from the fieldwork. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/eventDate;the date-time when the event was recorded. 20 year type modified habitat continent country countryCode stateProvince locality verbatimLocality samplingProtocol samplingEffort occurrenceStatus disposition organismQuantityType organismQuantity organismRemarks sex lifeStage Polchaninova N, Marushchak O http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/year;the year in which the record was made. http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/type; the nature or genre of the resource. http://purl.org/dc/terms/modified;the year on which the resource was changed. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/habitat;the description of the habitat, where the record was made. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/continent;the name of the continent in which the location is situated. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/country; the name of the country in which the location is situated (Ukraine). htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/countryCode;the standard code for the country in which the location is situated (UA). http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/stateProvince;the name of the smaller administrative region than country in which the location is situated (Lunhansk Oblast). htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/locality; the specific description of the place, where the record was made. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/verbatimLocality; original textual description of the place according to the author's notes from the fieldwork. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/iri/samplingProtocol; methods used during the research. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/samplingEffort; amount of effort expended during the fieldwork. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/occurrenceStatus; statement about the presence or absence of a taxon at a location. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/disposition; the current state of a specimen after the record was made. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/iri/organismQuantity Type; the type of quantification system used for the quantity of organisms. htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/organismQuantity; enumeration value for the quantity of organisms. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/organismRemarks;additional notes about the recorded animals. http://rs.tdwg.org/dwciiri/sex;the sex of the biological individual(s). htto://rs.tdwg.org/dwc/terms/lifeStage;the life stage of the registered animals. Spiders (Araneae) of the northeast of the Luhansk Oblast (Ukraine) 21 Acknowledgements The authors express their sincere gratitude to the Olin gGmbH foundation for their help and support for the preservation of data on the biodiversity of Ukraine obtained by the Ukrainian scientists, who were forced to leave their homeland due to the war (Russia's invasion of Ukraine). We are also thankful to Larisa Borovyk, director of the Luhansk Nature Reserve, for her cooperation and for providing information on the study area and the Reserve's history. We really appreciate the valuable comments of our colleagues, Anna Hirna, Christo Deltshev and Niclas Fritzén which contributed to the improvement of the initial draft. References ° Batary P, Holzschuh A, Orsi K, Samu F (2012) Responses of plant, insect and spider biodiversity to local and landscape scale management intensity in cereal crops and grasslands. 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