Escaphiella betin, Platnick & Dupérré, 2009

Platnick, Norman I. & Dupérré, Nadine, 2009, The American Goblin Spiders Of The New Genus Escaphiella (Araneae, Oonopidae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2009 (328), pp. 1-151 : 90-93

Escaphiella betin , new species Figures 545–569 ; map 11

TYPE: Male holotype and female allotype taken in pitfall traps at Punta Betín, Santa Marta, Magdalena, Colombia (Jan.–Mar. 1986; H. Müller), deposited in MHNG (PBI_OON 15685) .

ETYMOLOGY: The specific name is a noun in apposition taken from the type locality.

DIAGNOSIS: Members of this species resemble those of E. itys and E. tayrona , especially in the degree of right palpal asymmetry (figs. 552–558), but differ from the former in lacking an abdominal pattern (figs. 545, 561), from the latter in having the top of the pars cephalica smooth rather than granulate (figs. 547, 563) and a more inflated left palpal femur (figs. 553–555), and from both in the paler coloration and the more posteriorly extended anterior epigynal sclerite (fig. 566).

OTHER MATERIAL EXAMINED: COLOMBIA: Magdalena: Punta Betín, Santa Marta, Jan.–Mar. 1986, pitfalls (H. Müller, MHNG PBO_OON 15684), 178, 16♀.

DISTRIBUTION: Known only from the type locality in Magdalena, Colombia (map 11), where the species is sympatric with both E. gertschi and E. tayrona .

MALE (PBI_OON 15684): Total length 1.34 (figs. 545, 546, 548). Carapace pale orange, surface of elevated portion of pars cephalica smooth, sides granulate; lateral margins with blunt denticles (figs. 547, 551). Eyes: ALE circular, PME squared; ALE touching, ALE-PLE touching, PME touching throughout most of their length, PLE-PME touching (fig. 550). Sternum pale orange, without radial furrows between coxae I–II, II–III, III–IV, surface smooth, microsculpture absent (fig. 559). Chelicerae, endites, and labium pale orange. Abdomen ovoid; book lung covers large, ovoid; pedicel tube medium, ribbed, scutopedicel region with widely oval scutal ridge, scutum extending far dorsal of pedicel, with small rounded scutal ridge just above pedicel (fig. 560); dorsal scutum pale orange, covering more than 3/4 of abdomen, no soft tissue visible from above, middle surface smooth, sides smooth; postepigastric scutum pale orange, sides smooth. PMS present (compound microscope). Legs pale orange. Right palp consistently different from left palp, about half as large (figs. 552–558), proximal segments pale orange; embolus light; femur normal size; cymbium and bulb pale orange.

FEMALE (PBI_OON 15684): Total length 1.45 (figs. 563, 564, 567). Abdomen with soft portions of dorsum white (figs. 549, 561); scutopedicel region with small, rounded scutal ridge just above pedicel, smaller than in male (figs. 565, 568); epigastric scutum with anterior ridge (fig. 569). Anterior epigynal sclerite extending most of epigynal length (figs. 562, 566).

Figures

Figs. 545–551. Escaphiella betin, new species. 545. Male, habitus, dorsal view. 546. Same, ventral view. 547. Male, carapace, dorsal view. 548. Male, habitus, lateral view. 549. Female, habitus, anterior view. 550. Male, same. 551. Male, carapace, lateral view.

Figs. 552–560. Escaphiella betin, new species, male. 552. Left palp, dorsal view. 553. Same, prolateral view. 554. Same, ventral view. 555. Same, retrolateral view. 556. Right palp, dorsal view. 557. Same, prolateral view. 558. Same, ventral view. 559. Cephalothorax, ventral view. 560. Abdomen, anterior view.

Figs. 561–569. Escaphiella betin, new species, female. 561. Habitus, dorsal view. 562. Same, ventral view. 563. Carapace, dorsal view. 564. Same, lateral view. 565. Habitus, lateral view. 566. Epigynum, ventral view. 567. Cephalothorax, ventral view. 568. Abdomen, anterior view. 569. Anterior portion of abdomen, oblique lateral view.