The family Nemesiidae, belonging to the infraorder Mygalomorphae, comprises medium-sized to large burrowing spiders distributed only in the Northern Hemisphere. Amongst its constituent genera, Raveniola Zonstein, 1987 represents the most widely distributed genus in Asia, currently comprising 74 known species, with its range extending from West Asia through Central Asia to East Asia (Zonstein 1987, Zonstein et al. 2018, Zonstein 2024, World Spider Catalog 2026). The genus is diagnosed by the following combination of characters: ocular tubercle gradually elevated and conical, with the anterior median eyes distinctly raised; cheliceral furrow bearing a prolateral row of 8–12 homodont teeth and a few minute mesobasal denticles; maxillae with variable numbers of cuspules, ranging from a few to nearly one hundred, with significant interspecific variation; female spermathecae bifurcate, with the inner and outer branches frequently asymmetrical in shape, size and degree of sclerotisation; posterior median spinnerets often reduced to varying degrees or entirely absent; males with two (occasionally three) retroventral megaspines arranged sequentially on tibia I, which function to stabilise the female during copulation, his arrangement being shared amongst nemesiids only with Sinopesa, from which Raveniola differs primarily by having a noticeably longer and denser leg scopula (Zonstein et al. 2018, Zonstein 2024). Furthermore, species of Raveniola exhibit diverse habitat strategies: the majority utilise natural retreats such as cavities beneath stones or abandoned burrows of other animals as shelters, whereas only a minority inhabiting arid lowlands or high-altitude zones construct their own burrows (Zonstein 2024).

In China, the family Nemesiidae is currently represented by approximately 32 recorded species, belonging to four genera: Damarchilus Siliwal, Molur & Raven, 2015, Nemesia Audouin, 1826, Raveniola Zonstein, 1987 and Sinopesa Raven & Schwendinger, 1995 (World Spider Catalog 2026). Amongst these, Raveniola Zonstein, 1987 is the most species-rich genus, with known occurrences from the following provinces and municipalities: Yunnan, Guangxi, Sichuan, Fujian, Zhejiang, Hebei, Hubei, Tibet, Hunan, Shaanxi, Guangdong, Beijing and Henan (Li and Zonstein 2015, Tian et al. 2020, Lin et al. 2022, Lin et al. 2024, Zhou et al. 2025, Zonstein and Marusik 2025). According to the latest taxonomic study by Zonstein and Marusik (2025), all known Chinese Raveniola species have been preliminarily sorted into four distinct species groups (R. alpina, R. beelzebub, R. gracilis, R. montana) by the structural peculiarities of the male and female copulatory organs, the shape of the male tibia and metatarsus I or II, the number and arrangement of the maxillary or labial cuspules and the other structures. Only R. xizangensis cannot yet be definitively assigned to any established species group due to insufficient morphological data (Zonstein and Marusik 2025). Nevertheless, no species of Nemesiidae has ever been formally recorded from Jiangxi Province, reflecting that our knowledge of mygalomorph diversity in this region remains markedly insufficient.

During a recent exploratory field survey in Jinggangshan National Nature Reserve, Jiangxi Province, a series of nemesiid specimens was collected. Based on morphological examination and preliminary molecular data, these specimens are confirmed to represent a new species of the genus Raveniola. This discovery provides the first formal record of Nemesiidae from Jiangxi Province and extends the known distribution of the genus eastwards into central Jiangxi, thereby enriching the species diversity of Raveniola in eastern China and underscoring that the mygalomorph diversity of subtropical montane forests in this region remains far from fully explored.

Specimens were examined using a Jiangnan SZ6100 stereomicroscope. Male and female copulatory organs were dissected and examined in 80% ethanol. Epigynes were cleared with pancreatin solution (Álvarez-Padilla and Hormiga 2007). All specimens were photographed with a KUY NICE CCD camera, equipped with an Olympus CX43 compound microscope.

All measurements were made using a stereomicroscope (AxioVision SE64 rel. 4.8.3) and are given in millimetres. The total body length includes the chelicerae, but not the spinnerets. The length of the sternum was measured along the straight line between the posterior tip of the sternum and the hindmost part of the labium. Leg measurements are given as total length (femur, patella, tibia, metatarsus and tarsus). All examined specimens are deposited in the Animal Specimen Museum, College of Life Science, Jinggangshan University, Ji’an, China (ASM-JGSU).

DNA extraction, amplification and sequencing. DNA was isolated from legs (small size for right I−IV) and extractions performed with a Qiagen DNeasy Tissue Kit following a modified protocol of Valdez-Mondragón and Francke (2015). A DNA fragment corresponding to approximately 600 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome coxidase subunit I (COI) gene was amplified using the same primers (LCO1490 and HCO2198) used by Valdez-Mondragón and Francke (2015). Amplifications were carried out using a Veriti 96 Well Thermal Cycler (Applied Biosystems) following a modified protocol of Valdez-Mondragón and Francke (2015), in a total PCR volume of 20 μl: 2.5 μl DNA, 2.3 μl H2O, 10 μl Multiplex-PCR Kit of Qiagen (which includes dNTPs, MgCl₂, Taq PCR polymerase and Buffer), 3.2 μl of primers (1.6 of LCO1490, 1.6 of HCO2198) and 2 μl of Q-Solution (Qiagen). The PCR programme was as follows: initial step 15 min at 95°C; amplification 35 cycles of 35s at 94°C (denaturation), 1 min 30s at 40°C (annealing) and 1 min 30s at 72°C (elongation) and final elongation 10 min at 72°C (Valdez-Mondragón and Francke 2015).

Terminology of the male palp and female genitalia follows Zonstein (2024). The abbreviations used in the figures are as follows: ALE – anterior lateral eye, AME – anterior median eye, CB − copulatory bulb, Em – embolus, LD – lateral diverticulum, MOA – median ocular area, PLE – posterior lateral eye, PME – posterior median eye, SD – sperm duct, ST – spermathecal trunk.

Based on the known distribution of the 74 species compiled above, the present discovery of Raveniola from Jiangxi Province significantly extends the known range of the genus in eastern China. Previously, the easternmost records of Raveniola in China were confined to Zhejiang, Fujian and northern Guangdong, with no records from the intervening provinces. The new species discovered in Jinggangshan National Nature Reserve, Jiangxi Province, connects the south-western and eastern distribution ranges of the genus in China, making the known distribution of Raveniola in China more continuous. According to the latest taxonomic study by Zonstein and Marusik (2025), all known Chinese Raveniola species have been preliminarily sorted into four distinct species groups (R. alpina, R. beelzebub, R. gracilis, R. montana) by the structural peculiarities of the male and female copulatory organs, the shape of the male tibia and metatarsus I or II, the number and arrangement of the maxillary or labial cuspules and the other structures. Only R. xizangensis cannot yet be definitively assigned to any established species group due to insufficient morphological data (Zonstein and Marusik 2025). This new species can be assigned to the R. gracilis species group, based on the hook-shaped distal embolus and the maxillae only with 3 or 4 cuspules. The present finding adds important distributional data for understanding the phylogenetic relationships and biogeographic patterns of the genus in the Oriental Region. Furthermore, this record also indicates that the mygalomorph fauna of central-eastern China remains significantly under-sampled; targeted surveys of overlooked microhabitats, such as soil burrows and under-stone retreats, are likely to yield additional undescribed species in this region.