TY - GEN A2 - Rix, Michael G. T1 - Australasian arachnology, Number 83, February 2012 T2 - Australasian arachnology : newsletter of the Australasian Arachnological Society N2 - Welcome to Issue 83 of Australasian Arachnology. I’d like to begin this editorial by once again noting the steady stream of new members who are joining the society, and observing (as always) the exemplary recent research outputs in the Australasian region. The Australasian arachnological community continues to maintain a strong interest in our remarkable arachnid fauna, and continues to promote arachnology throughout the region. This is by no means a straightforward task, given the negative public perceptions that often accompany our eight-legged friends, and given the sometimes challenging research funding environment for taxonomic and biodiversity research. Certainly, having watched the society grow over the last twenty years, and having seen perceptions of the Australasian fauna change during that time, it is both reassuring and exciting to look ahead. With unparalleled population growth throughout the region and the world, and unprecedented pressures on our natural landscapes, habitats and remaining natural biomes, it is critical that arachnids (and indeed all invertebrates) continue to receive the growing recognition they deserve among ecologists, conservation biologists, legislators and the public at large. The 10th Invertebrate Biodiversity and Conservation Conference in Melbourne in December 2011 confirmed just how active research in this field is, and there is no doubt that Australasian arachnids will continue to be the focus of much positive attention over the next few years. Y1 - 2012 UR - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/27924 UR - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-279246 ER -