NOTES ON THE NEOTROPICAL SPIDER GENUS MODISIMUS (PHOLCIDAE, ARANEAE),WITH DESCRIPTIONS OF 13 NEW SPECIES FROM COSTA-RICA AND NEIGHBORING COUNTRIES

Notes on the morphology and natural history of Central American Modisi mus species are given. Thirteen new species from Costa Rica, Panama an d Nicaragua are described. This highlights the greatly underestimated diversity of the genus in the region (only one species has previously been recorded from Costa Pica). New names are: Modisimus bribri new sp ecies, M. cahuita new species, M, caldera new species, M, coco new spe cies, M. dominical new species, M. guatuso new species, M. madreselva new species, M. nicaraguensis new species, M, pittier new species, M, sanvito new species, M. sarapiqui new species, M, selvanegra new speci es and M. tortuguero new species. Seven further species of the genus a re redescribed in order to ascertain their distinctiveness from the ne w species: M. dilutus Gertsch 1941 and M. pulchellus Banks 1929 from P anama, M. inornatus Cambridge 1895, M. maculatipes Cambridge 1895, M. putus Cambridge 1895 (which is newly synonymized with M. maculatipes), M. propinquus Cambridge 1896 from Mexico and M. texanus Banks 1906 fr om Texas.