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Shallow subterranean habitats are among the last habitats in Central Europe to be arachnologically researched. Using stratified pipe traps, we studied the vertical distribution of spiders in soil and interspaces in bedrock (shallow subterranean habitats). Specifically, we sampled fauna in different substrates, including limestone, sandy marlstone, sandy marl, claystone, loess, and artificial gravel accumulation. Employing stratified pipe traps allowed us to identify the depth at which particular species occurred. Across multiple years and sampling sites, we collected 76 spider species, 21 of which showed an affinity for subterranean microhabitats. Some of these species occurred in interspaces in soil and bedrock, whereas others have been previously found in subterranean ant nests and animal burrows. We collected five species (Iberina microphthalma, Centromerus cf. piccolo, Porrhomma cambridgei, P. microcavense, and P. microps) almost exclusively at depths over half a meter, suggesting the strong affinity of these species for a subterranean lifestyle. We provide diagrams of these species’ vertical distribution and photo-document eye reduction. Our study demonstrates that poorly studied shallow subterranean habitats harbor diverse subterranean spider fauna, including several previously considered rare species in Central Europe.

We present a subterranean amphipod from genus Niphargus collected in soil traps. Traps were set for sampling soil spiders in the inundation of the Včelínek Brook, Dyje River watershed, Czech Republic. Most likely, the species lives in a shallow subterranean habitat and has likely got entrapped into soil traps at elevated level of groundwater during two floods. In total 189 specimens were collected. The collected amphipods are small, slender and resemble species that were broadly classified to N. aquilex aggregate. Although damaged DNA does not allow more inclusive taxonomic and phylogenetic examination of the species, a comprehensive revision of 19 morphological diagnostic traits for 64 species from the aggregate indicates that these specimens should be treated as a new species, named Niphargus diadematus sp. n.