Hortipes creber, BOSSELAERS & JOCQUÉ, 2000

BOSSELAERS, JAN & JOCQUÉ, RUDY, 2000, Hortipes, A Huge Genus Of Tiny Afrotropical Spiders (Araneae, Liocranidae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2000 (256), pp. 4-4 : 4-

Hortipes creber , new species Figures 14c–e , 16b ; Map 2

TYPES: Male holotype: in litter, elev. 1650 m, Mwanihana Forest Reserve above Sanje, Paratypes: 16 and two subadult females together with holotype ; 26 in pitfall trap, elev. 1650 m, same locality (August 18, 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 16, 2♀ in pitfall trap, elev. 1850 m, same locality (18 August 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 3♀ in pitfall trap, elev. 1000 m,

2000 BOSSELAERS AND JOCQUÉ: HORTIPES 49 50 BULLETIN AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY NO. 256

elev. 1000 m, same locality (1 August 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) .

ETYMOLOGY: The species is named creber , frequent, because it appears to be common in Mwanihana Forest Reserve.

DIAGNOSIS: Males of H. creber are recognized by the thin, slender RTA, which is slightly curved down and inserted at an angle of about 30° with axis of the segment; the males are somewhat similar to those of H. salticola but differ by the much shorter RTA, the narrower cymbium, and the evenly curved MA, which only reaches the tip of the RTA. In H. salticola the MA is sharply bent and reaches the base of the RTA. Females can be distinguished by the rather simple vulva, the ID of which consists of a first, straight, weakly sclerotized stretch running in frontal direction followed by a wider, more heavily sclerotized part associated with a gland, followed by a 360° loop.

MALE: Measurements. Total length 2.30; carapace 1.08 long, 0.81 wide; length of fe: I 0.97, II 1.05, III 0.78, IV 1.16. Leg spination. Fe: I rv 2; IV plt 0 rlt 0; ti: I, II vsp 5–6; mt: III plt 1 vt 0 rlt 0; IV plt 1 vt 1 rlt 1. Coloration. Carapace yellow, lighter at the fovea. Chelicerae pale yellow, sternum yellowish white. Legs pale yellow. Abdomen pale yellow, no pattern. Palp. RTA simple, fairly narrow at base and gradually tapered toward sharp tip; cymbium narrow, with very narrow, shallow retrolateral concavity but without series of curved hairs; retrolateral part of tegulum swollen; sperm duct fairly narrow over entire course, slightly more narrowed just before entering embolus; MA originating in frontal part of tegulum, fairly narrow at base, curved over tegulum, strongly tapered in basal part, slender and gradually curved down in distal part, tip reaches extremity of RTA; embolus originating on prolateral part of tegulum, whiplike, fairly short, distal part appressed against MA (fig. 14c, d).

FEMALE: Measurements. Total length 2.32; carapace 0.97 long, 0.81 wide; length of fe: I 0.76, II 0.84, III 0.70, IV 0.92. Leg spination. Fe: I rv 2; IV plt 0 rlt 0; ti: I, II vsp 6; mt: III plt 1 vt 0 rlt 0; IV plt 1 vt 1 rlt 1. Coloration. Carapace yellow, lighter at yellow, no pattern. Genitalia. Vulva: ID consisting of first, straight, weakly sclerotized stretch running in frontal direction, followed by wider, more heavily sclerotized part associated with gland and connected to ST1 by stretch looped over 360° (figs. 14e; 16b).

OTHER MATERIAL EXAMINED: Tanzania: 16 in litter, Mwanihana Forest Reserve above Sanje, Uzungwa mountains , elev. 1250 m (1 August 1981; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 26 in litter, same locality, elev. 1250 m (25 July 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 1♀ in pitfall trap, same locality, same data (M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 1♀ in pitfall trap, same locality, elev. 900 m (1 August 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 46 in litter, same locality, elev. 600 m (3 August 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 2 subadult females in litter, same locality, elev. 1800 m (18 August 1982; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 1♀ in pitfall trap, same locality, same data (M. Stoltze and N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 16, 1♀ in litter in montane rain forest, Mwanihana Forest Reserve , elev. 1800–1850 m, (28–29 September 1984; N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 1♀ in pitfall trap in lowland rain forest, same locality, elev. 700 m (8–16 September 1984; N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) ; 2 females in a pitfall trap in intermediate rain forest Iringa region, Unzungwa Scarp Forest Reserve above Chita village , elev. 1050 m (26–29 October 1984; N. Scharff) ( ZMUC) .

VARIABILITY: The number of tibial vsp in males (5 or 6) and the transparency of the vulva are variable.

DISTRIBUTION: Mwanihana Forest Reserve and Uzungwa Scarp Forest Reserve, Uzungwa Mountains, Tanzania, between elev.s of 600 and 1850 m.

Figures

Map 2. Distribution of Hortipes species in Tanzania. Hortipes angariopsis z, H. bjorni v, H. castor •, H. creber h, H. cucurbita ^, H. delphinus., H. exoptans, H. fastigiensis #, H. narcissus Δ, H. leno, H. libidinosus * H. mulciber, H. ostiovolutus n, H. platnicki D, H. pollux O, H. salticola V, H. scharffi, and H. stoltzei y.

Figs. 14. a, b. Hortipes stoltzei, new species, male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. c–e. Hortipes creber, new species. c, d. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. e. Epigyne. f–k. Hortipes orchatocnemis, new species. f, g. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. h. Male palpal ti, dorsal view. i, j. Epigynes. k. Eye arrangement, dorsal view. l–n. Hortipes contubernalis, new species. l, m. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. n. Epigyne. Scale lines: 0.25 mm.

Figs. 16. a. Hortipes echo, new species, vulva, ventral view. b. Hortipes creber, new species, vulva, ventral view. c. Hortipes orchatocnemis, new species, vulva, ventral view. d. Hortipes mesembrinus, new species, vulva, ventral view. e. Hortipes contubernalis, new species, vulva, ventral view. f. Hortipes luytenae, vulva, ventral view. g. Hortipes coccinatus, new species, vulva, ventral view. Scale line: