TAITOINAE MEDRANO, KURY & MENDES, 2022

Medrano, Miguel, Kury, Adriano Brilhante & Mendes, Amanda Cruz, 2022, Morphology-based cladistics splinters the century-old dichotomy of the pied harvestmen (Arachnida: Gonyleptoidea: Cosmetidae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 195, pp. 585-672 : 612-613

TAITOINAE MEDRANO, KURY & MENDES SUBFAM. NOV.

Zoobank registration: urn: lsid: zoobank. org:act:A56D20FB-66FE-446B-B561-546B84 F42712

Comment: What we herein call Taitoinae is a well-supported clade (see above at the beginning of the ‘Results’ section). A possible relationship among its genera has been anticipated by Kury & Barros (2014) when commenting on the equuleus. The interrelationships among the genera and the definition of the genera themselves still need resolution, and we can consider that, presently, the Taitoinae include some 40 species. We were in the process of gathering enough specimens of Taitoinae to provide a reappraisal of the generic diagnoses when this material was all destroyed in 2018. Now we are gradually rebuilding our taitoine collection, aiming to review the subfamily.

Diagnosis: Medium-sized animals with medium-length legs. DS beta-type or beta elongate-type ( Fig. 4F ), flat in lateral view, areas I and III armed with paramedian low spines (when present). Anal operculum armed with blunt protuberance in some species. Pattern of spots in DS either as an equuleus (majority of genera) or in form of two subparallel longitudinal stripes ( Acritas and Eucynortella Roewer, 1912 ).With elongate coda and a transversal yellow stripe in area V, that may be dissociated (free-tergite zero). Clavi inguines may be present. Coxa IV elongate (0.8× DS length in dorsal view), with straight outline and directed backwards. Femur IV median-sized (1.5× DS length) sometimes curved, and with a retrolateral row of equally spaced tubercles. Pro-ventral armature variable. A comb of prolateral hooks may be present in distal Fe IV (neither in all genera nor in all species of each genus).

Type genus: Taito Kury & Barros, 2014 .

Combined distribution: North-western South America, except Guyana shield ( Fig. 8 ).

Included genera (from the analysis):

Acritas Sørensen, 1932 . Monotypic. Acritas bilineatus Sørensen, 1932 from the Andean slopes in Venezuela (García et al., 2017).

Chusgonobius Roewer, 1952 . Type-species Chusgonobius weyrauchi Roewer, 1952 . Currently two species from Andean slopes in Peru. The second species was transferred from Platymessa Mello-Leitão, 1941 by Medrano & Kury (2016).

Cynortopyga Roewer, 1947 . Monotypic. Type-species Cynortopyga h-album Roewer, 1947 is a junior synonym of Eucynortella pauper Piza, 1938 (syn. nov.; holotype examined), which is herewith removed from Eucynortella , creating the new combination Cynortopyga pauper comb. nov.. Brazilian Amazon lowland forest.

Taito Kury & Barros, 2014 . Type-species Taito spaceinvaders Kury & Barros, 2014 . Currently 15 species, 14 of which either reviewed or described in Kury & Barros (2014), three of which are included in the present analysis and fail to resolve as a wellsupported clade. A more recently described species is herein transferred to Vononana .

Vononana Roewer, 1928 . Currently two species. The type-species Vononana peruviana ( Chamberlin, 1916) is from Peru and the second species, from Mexico, probably does not belong here. The genus now includes species from western Brazil, Argentina and Peru. It should also include two species which form new combinations: Cynortula patellaris Roewer, 1947 , now Vononana patellaris comb. nov. and Taito adrik Friedrich & Lehmann, 2020 , now Vononana adrik comb. nov. There is also an undescribed species from western Brazil, which was in process of description but this material was burned, so we only indicate it as ‘ Vononana sp. A’ (MNRJ 2780, MNRJ 2739, MNRJ 2741, MNRJ 3453).

Vononoides Roewer, 1912 . Monotypic. Type-species Vononoides unimaculatus Roewer, 1912 . Probably closely related to Vononella Roewer 1925 , also monotypic, also from Ecuador.

Other included genera (according to the present diagnosis):

Chinchipea Roewer, 1952 . Monotypic. Peruvian Andes. The type-species Chinchipea bicurvata Roewer, 1952 possesses an equuleus, retrolateral apophyses in trochanters I–III, groin warts and free tergite-zero. Not examined.

Chirinosbius Roewer, 1952 . Two species. Peruvian Andes. The type-species Chirinosbius poecilis Roewer, 1952 possesses an equuleus, raised laterals of scutum, retrolat. apophyses, in trochanters I–III, groin warts and free tergite-zero. Examined only by photographs (courtesy of Pinto-da-Rocha).

Cynortoplus Roewer, 1925 . Monotypic. Western Andean slope ( Ecuador). The type-species Cynortoplus albimaculatus Roewer, 1925 possesses an equuleus, retrolateral apophyses, in trochanters I–III, groin warts, distal prolateral comb of hooks on Fe IV and free tergite-zero. Not examined.

Eucynortella Roewer, 1912 . Probably artificial, widespread genus with 14 species. The type-species Eucynortella spectabilis Roewer, 1912 (from French Guiana) is probably closely related to Acritas bilineatus Sørensen, 1932 (with scutum outline beta elongatetype, raised laterals of scutum and identical white blots). * Eucynortella cryptogramma Mello-Leitão, 1942 used in the present analysis, belongs to Taitoinae but probably does not belong in Eucynortella . Likewise, Eucynortella pauper Piza, 1938 , used in the present analysis, is herein considered a senior subjective synonym of Cynortopyga h-album Roewer, 1947 .

Pygocynorta Roewer, 1925 . Monotypic. Eastern Andean slope ( Ecuador). Type-species Pygocynorta festae Roewer, 1925 possesses an equuleus, scutum outline beta elongate-type, retrolateral apophyses in trochanters I– II, groin warts, coxae IV extremely elongated, directed backwards, with straight external outline and free tergitezero (as defined in Kury & Barros, 2014). Examined only by photographs (courtesy of Pinto-da-Rocha).

Figures

Figure 4. Habitus in vivo of some non-discosomaticinae. A, Eucynortella cryptograma from Manabí (Ecuador). B, Vononana adrik from the biological research station Panguana (Peru). C, Taito spaceinvaders from Humaitá (Brazil). D, Flirtea valida from Pará (Brazil). E, Eulibitia scalaris from Boyacá (Colombia). F, Metalibitia sp. from Bolivian Amazon. G, Acantholibitia pluriarcuata from Piauí (Brazil). H, Libitioides albolineata from North Carolina (USA). Photographs of Martin Mandák (A), Dieter Schulten (B), Leonardo Carvalho (C, D, G), Miguel Medrano (E), Arthur Anker (F) and Jason Crockwell (H).

Figure 8. Strict consensus of trees obtained with K = 6.2878 and 7.4809, indicating larger groups as defined herein, with asserted distributions juxtaposed (cont.). * indicates type species of the genera. Navajo rugs equal as Figure 7.