Hesperonemastoma smilax Shear, 2010

Taxonomy

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Arthropoda
Subphylum	Chelicerata
Class	Arachnida
Order	Opiliones
Family	Sabaconidae
Genus	Hesperonemastoma
Species	Hesperonemastoma smilax Shear, 2010

Description

Diagnostic characters

Ecological class: Troglobiont
Realm: Terrestrial
Troglomorphy: Troglomorphic

Distribution

Type locality

McClungs Cave, Greenbrier Co. WV

Range

Known from one county in West Virginia in the Appalachians karst region.

Continent

North America

Country

United States

States and provinces

West Virginia

Counties

West Virginia: Greenbrier

Karst regions

Appalachians

Conservation and management

NatureServe

GNR Unranked

Subnational ranks

West Virginia: S1 Critically Imperiled

Ranks looked up 23 August 2026. Conservation status changes, and a rank here is as current as that date and no more.

State and federal status

Not listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act.

Other resources

Catalogue of Life: 7VCYS
GBIF: 9544208
ITIS: 1014027
iNaturalist: 1130753

References

Shear, W.A. 2010b. Hesperonemastoma smilax, n. sp., a remarkable new harvestman from a cave in West Virginia, with comments on other reported cave-dwelling Hesperonemastoma species (Opiliones, Ischyropsalidoidea, Sabaconidae). Journal of Cave and Karst Studies 72: 105–110.

This account was last revised 28 August 2026. Conservation ranks were looked up 23 August 2026.

How to cite this account

Hesperonemastoma smilax Shear, 2010. Cave Biology Data Portal, account SP-0204. https://cavebiology.org/species/hesperonemastoma-smilax/ (accessed 18 October 2026).

Data sources and funding are listed in the Acknowledgments.

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