Fox could have made Werrity a Special Adviser but he chose not to, thereby keeping his role informal and less constrained

On Friday, the Defence Secretary Liam Fox was forced to resign after questions were raised concerning his relationship with Adam Werritty, and his nebulous links to unspecified backers, business contacts and overseas officials. Andrew Blick looks at the historical roots of the Special Advisor role for explanations of how these situations can come about

Abundant and rare spiders on tree trunks in German forests (Arachnida, Araneae)

The spider fauna active on the bark of trees in forests on eight sites in different regions in Germany was investigated. Trunk eclectors at about 2-4 meters height on living trees were used in different regions of Germany (SW Bavaria, Hesse, Brandenburg) between 1990 and 2003. In Hesse eclectors were also used on dead beech trees (standing and lying). In this study data, mainly from beech (Fagus sylvatica) and spruce (Picea abies), from May to October are compared – whole year samples (including winter) are only available from Hesse. A total of 334 spider species were recorded with these bark traps, i.e. about one third of the spider species known from Germany. On average, each of the eight regions yielded 140.5 (± 26.2) species, each single tree 40.5 (± 12.2) species and 502 (±452) adult spiders per season (i.e. May to Oct.). The 20 most abundant species are listed and characterised in detail. Six of the 20 species were not known to be abundant on bark, three prefer conifers and three beech/broadleaf. Even in winter (December-March) there was a remarkably high activity on the trunks. However, only a few species occur exclusively or mainly in winter. Finally, the rarity of some bark spider species is discussed and details (all known records in Germany, phenology) of four of them are presented (Clubiona leucaspis, Gongylidiellum edentatum, Kratochviliella bicapitata, Oreonetides quadridentatus). The diversity and importance of the spider fauna on bark in Central Europe is still underestimated

Taxonomic note on Aculepeira lapponica (Arachnida: Araneae: Araneidae)

Caused by the similarity with the type species Aculepeira packardi and with A. ceropegia we confirm the combination Aculepeira lapponica for the arctic araneid Aranea lapponica Holm, 1945

Reports of Parliament’s decline much exaggerated

The last decade has seen a series of significant innovations in the way Parliament holds government to account, mostly involving the House of Commons, but in some cases the House of Lords as well. They include: More resources for select committees; The introduction of ‘core tasks’ for select committees in the Commons setting out their work objectives; More select committees in both houses, holding more inquiries and producing more reports; The Prime Minister holding twice-annual oral evidence sessions with the House of Commons Liaison Committee, which comprises the chairs of the various Commons select committees; The introduction of public bill committees for more effective legislative scrutiny in the Commons; Greater transparency for executive financial accountability to Parliament; A Commons backbench business committee, to some extent loosening the grip of the executive, via the whips, on the Commons timetable; Elections for Commons committee members and chairs, again lessening the influence of the whips; Pre-appointment hearings by Commons committees for preferred candidates for major public appointments; and The placing of powers previously exercised under the extra-parliamentary Royal Prerogative on a statutory basis, making Parliament the ultimate authority. Most notably, the Civil Service is now regulated by an Act of Parliament

Federalism provides a desirable path forward for the UK’s constitution – and may be the only means of preserving the Union

The UK is soon to decide whether to maintain its membership of the European Union, with only two years having elapsed since the referendum on Scottish independence. Meanwhile, the government is assisting in the creation of ‘city regions’ in England. Andrew Blick argues that given all of this, the time is right to turn to federalism, with its ability to disperse powers in a codified and consistent manner – for answers

Paul D. Hillyard (2005): Harvestmen: Keys and notes for the identification of British species

Buchbesprechun

HARVEY, PETER R., DAVID R. NELLIST & MARK G. TELFER (eds.) (2002): Provisional atlas of British spiders (Arachnida, Araneae), volumes 1 & 2 [Rezension]

Die Briten setzen, wie schon bei Bestimmungsbüchern, nun auch für Kartenwerke neue Maßstäbe. Dieses Werk hat eine lange Entstehungsgeschichte. Seit 1987 gibt es das "National Spider Recording Scheme", das seither drei "National Organisers" hatte: Clifford SMITH (1987-1993), David NELLIST (1993-1999) und Peter HARVEY (seit 1999). In den Atlas wurden die Spinnen-Nachweise (ähnlich wie seit vergleichsweise kurzer Zeit in Deutschland) im 10x10km-Raster erfasst