Asemonea pusilla, Wesołowska & Russell-Smith, 2022

Wesołowska, Wanda & Russell-Smith, Anthony, 2022, Jumping spiders from Ivory Coast collected by J. - C. Ledoux (Araneae, Salticidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 841 (1), pp. 1-143 : 9-11

Asemonea pusilla sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:8444D053-6352-4351-A174-F55F4C399E05

Fig. 5C–F

Diagnosis

The female of this species has an epigyne similar to that in Asemonea pulchra , but the seminal ducts are clearly wider and copulatory openings hidden under heavily sclerotized flaps absent in A. pulchra (compare Fig. 5A with Fig. 5B and Fig. 5F with Wanless 1980: fig. 15g –h). Also the colouration of Asemonea pusilla sp. nov. is generally lighter than in the former species.

Etymology

The specific name is Latin, meaning ‘very small’, and refers to the size of this spider.

Material examined

Holotype IVORY COAST • ♀; Lamto ; 26 Nov. 1975; “savane à Loudetia , du virage glissant”; MNHN. Paratypes IVORY COAST • 1 ♀; Lamto ; 6 Sep. 1975; “savane, haut des herbes”; MNHN • 1 ♀; Mt Niangbo ; 13 Oct. 1975; “savane arborée, base des herbes”; MNHN • 1 ♀; 10 km S of Odienné ; 19 Oct. 1975; “savane arborée, haut des herbes”; MNHN .

Description

Male

Unknown.

Female

MEASUREMENTS. Cephalothorax length 1.3–1.4, width 0.9, height 0.4. Eye field length 0.4, anterior width 0.7, posterior width 0.5. Abdomen 1.5–1.6, width 0.8. General appearance as in Fig. 5C . Very small spider.

CARAPACE. Pear-shaped, longer than wide, moderately high with slightly elevated ocular area, yellow, with pair of black lines on thoracic part. Eyes arranged in four rows, as in other lyssomanines, set on well-developed tubercles, surrounded by black area (except anterior medians), eyes of third row relatively large, eye field trapezoid, narrower posteriorly, some white hairs at eyes. Mouthparts pale yellow, chelicerae with three small teeth on retromargin, and two diminutive teeth on promargin. Sternum large, cordiform, whitish yellow.

ABDOMEN. Slender, narrower than carapace, light yellow, with delicate blackish grey pattern composed of two longitudinal lines connected at two thirds of abdominal length and dark dot posteriorly ( Fig. 5C ). Sparse long bristles on dorsum. Venter creamy. Spinnerets yellow, posterior pair with terminal segments blackish.

LEGS. Pale yellow with blackish marks on lateral surfaces at bases and tips of tibiae III and IV. Spines numerous, long, light. Four pairs of ventral spines on both tibia and metatarsus of first leg. Leg hairs pale.

EPIGYNE. With centrally located copulatory openings spaced apart and covered with strongly sclerotized flaps ( Fig. 5D–E ). Internal structure as in Fig. 5F .

Distribution

Only known from Ivory Coast.

Figures

Fig. 5. A–B. Asemonea pulchra Berland & Millot, 1941,♀ (MNHN). C–F. Asemonea pusilla sp. nov., paratype, ♀ (MNHN). A, C. Habitus, dorsal view. B, D–E. Epigyne. F. Internal structure of epigyne.