Eukoenenia sendrai, Barranco, P. & Mayoral, J. G., 2014

Barranco, P. & Mayoral, J. G., 2014, New palpigrades (Arachnida, Eukoeneniidae) from the Iberian Peninsula, Zootaxa 3826 (3), pp. 544-562 : 556-558

Eukoenenia sendrai sp. nov.

( Figs. 36–47 , Table 1 )

Material examined. Holotype ♀, Cova de las Meravelles, Llombai, Valencia, Spain, [UTM 30SYJ083537], 21November 2002, leg. S. Montagud et al. Deposited in MNCN ( MNCN 20.02/17290).

Description of female. Prosoma: frontal organ with 2 expanded granulate branches, pointed apically and each over 1.5 times longer than wide ( Fig. 36 ). Lateral organ with 5 pointed and granulate blades, each 4.4 times longer than wide ( Fig. 37 ). Propeltidium with 9 + 9 short setae. Metapeltidium with 3 + 3 setae (t1, t2, t3), t1 shorter than t2 and t3 (10 µm, 112 µm, 87 µm). Hand of chelicera with 6 dorsal and one ventral seta, each finger with 9 teeth. Sternum with 7 deuto-tritosternal setae in two irregular rows, posterior with 4 and anterior with 3 setae.

Chaetotaxy of coxae: pedipalp with 16 setae; leg I with 14 setae; leg II with 16 setae, 10 normal + 6 thick; leg III with 14 setae, 8 normal + 6 thick; leg IV with 11 setae, 8 normal + 3 thick ( Figs 38–42 ). Leg I: basitarsus 3, 3.2 times longer than wide, with 4 setae ( Fig. 43 ); grt 98 µm, gla 88 µm, r 98 µm long, equal to the segment (105/107 µm, t / r = 0.98), inserted distally and surpassing distal margin of basitarsus 4 (88/105 µm, s / er = 0.84). Ibta4 with one trichobothrium, four long, thin setae, one short seta and a forked seta with very short branches at distal end. Leg IV: basitarsus 4 with 7 setae (2 esd, 2 esp, gla, grt and r) ( Fig. 44 ), bta / ti 0.99; r seta almost twice shorter than dorsal edge of segment (190/98 µm, t / r = 1.95) and inserted slightly beyond middle of segment (s / er = 0.59); both esp proximally inserted, in basal quarter, followed by gla and grt inserted between esp and r seta; both esd inserted on distal third. Number of bifurcate setae of Pta3 and Ita3 could not be determined (segments partially obscured by dirt).

Opisthosoma: Tergite II with 5 setae, one s, one t3 at each side and an extra seta on the axis of symmetry. Tergites III–VI each with 3 + 3 dorsal setae: t1, t3 (80 µm) and one slender lateral seta s (50 µm) on each half; tergite VII–VIII with 2 + 2 slender setae (t1, t3). Sternite III with 2 + 2 setae ( Fig. 45 ). Sternites IV–VI with 5 + 5 setae, (s1 s2 and a1–a3), s shorter than a on all segments. Sternites VII–VIII with 3 + 3 slender setae (s1 and a1–a2); additionally, sternite VIII carries a middle seta. Segments IX–XI with 6, 6 and 8 setae, respectively ( Fig. 46 ).

Genital region of the female: With 2 pairs of lobes and a total of 28 setae. First lobe with 11 + 11 setae arranged in four transverse rows, 2 + 2, 2 + 2, 1 + 1, 1 + 1, 1 + 1 and 4 + 4 apical setae, of which a1 and a2 are slightly shorter than a3 and a4. Second lobe with 3 + 3 setae ( Fig. 47 ).

Male. Unknown.

Etymology. The species is named after its collector, Dr Alberto Sendra Moncholí.

Remarks. E. sendrai sp. nov. is related to nine other species, based on the ventral chaetotaxy of sternites IV–VI (5 + 5 for all three segments): E. ankaratrensis Remy, 1959 , E. brolemanni ( Remy, 1950) , E. chartoni ( Remy, 1950) , E. condei Orghidan, Georgescu & Sârbu, 1982 , E. delphini ( Remy, 1950) , E. florenciae ( Rucker, 1903) , E. janetscheki Condé, 1993 , E. meridiana Remy, 1959 and E. spelaea ( Peyerimhoff, 1902) ( Rucker 1903; Peyerimhoff 1902; Remy 1950; Remy 1959; Orghidan et al. 1982; Condé 1993). E. naxos Condé, 1989 shares the same number of setae on sternite IV (5+5), but it has a different formula for segments V and VI (7 + 7) ( Condé 1989). None of these species shares the following combination of characters with E. sendrai sp. nov.: 7 setae on basitarsus IV, 5 blades in lateral organ and 7 deuto-tritosternal setae. Of the nine species, only E. naxos and E. spelaea carry 5 lateral organs; however, they have 14 and 4 deuto-tritosternal setae, respectively. E. brolemanni , E. condei , E. florenciae and E. spelaea have 8 teeth on each jaw of the chela, while E. sendrai sp. nov. has 9.

The appendices of E. sendrai sp. nov. are also longer than those of any of the ten related species. The length of basitarsus IV in the new species is 190 µm, while in E. ankaratrensis and E. condei it is 160 and 149–154 µm, respectively; the length of this segment in the other seven species is smaller, varying from 57 to 107 µm. Ti I is longer in E. sendrai sp. nov. (200 µm) than in E. ankaratrensis (77 µm), E. condei (189 µm) and E. spelaea (80–143 µm). The chaetotaxy of the first and second lobes of the genitalia of E. sendrai sp. nov. differs from that of E. condei (11 + 11/3+3 vs. 10 + 10/3+3).

Figures

FIGURE 47. Eukoenenia sendrai sp. nov., holotype female, genital region. Scale bar = 50 µm.

FIGURES 36 – 42. Eukoenenia sendrai sp. nov., holotype. 36, frontal organ, dorsal view; 37, lateral organ, dorsal view; 38, coxa I; 39, coxa II; 40, coxa IV; 41, coxa III; 42, pedipalp coxa. Thick coxal setae represented with a thicker line and a terminal spine. Scale bars 36 – 37 = 50 µm; 38 – 42 = 100 µm.

FIGURES 43 – 44. Eukoenenia sendrai sp. nov., holotype. 43, basitarsi 3 – 4, leg I; 44, basitarsus, leg IV. Scale bar = 100 µm.

FIGURES 45 – 46. Eukoenenia sendrai sp. nov., holotype opisthosoma. 46, dorsal view; 47, ventral view. Scale bar 200 µm.