Nesticus nasicus Coyle & McGarity, 1992

Hedin, Marshal & Milne, Marc A., 2023, New species in old mountains: integrative taxonomy reveals ten new species and extensive short-range endemism in Nesticus spiders (Araneae, Nesticidae) from the southern Appalachian Mountains, ZooKeys 1145, pp. 1-130 : 1

Nesticus nasicus Coyle & McGarity, 1992

Figs 31A-D , 32A-H

Nesticus nasicus Coyle & McGarity, 1992: 162, figs 1-4, 7-14.

Material examined.

Type material: Holotype: USA - North Carolina, Jackson Co. • ♂ holotype; 1 mile W of Dillsboro at Cowee Mountain Train Tunnel , rock bank; 28 Oct. 1990; T McGarity leg. AMNH; New collections from type locality: - Jackson Co. • ♂, 17♀; Cowee Mountain Train Tunnel , NW of Dillsboro; 35.3768°N, - 83.268°W; 14 Aug. 1992; M. Hedin leg. Non type material: - Buncombe Co. • ♀; NE Mt. Pisgah , Hwy 151, head of McKinney Creek ; 35.4448°N, - 82.7225°W; 5 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, M. Lowder, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_194; • ♀; NE Mt. Pisgah , Hwy 151, head of McKinney Creek ; 35.4448°N, - 82.7225°W; 22 Aug. 2004; M. Hedin, R. Keith, J. Starrett, S. Thomas leg.; MCH 04_074; - Haywood Co. • ♀; Blue Ridge Parkway, vicinity Richland Balsam ; 35.3666°N, - 82.9915°W; 4 Aug. 1992; F. Coyle leg.; • 4♂, 2♀, 7 imm; Hwy 215, along West Fork Pigeon River ; 35.339°N, - 82.9016°W; 4 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, F. Coyle, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_190; • 2♂, 8♀, 5 imm; Hwy 276, N Pigeon Gap; 35.3677°N, - 82.7958°W; 4 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, M. Lowder, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_193; - Jackson Co. • 3♀, 1 imm; Coward Mountain near Jackie Spring Gap; 35.3352°N, - 83.0897°W; 1 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_178; • 4♀, 1 imm; Coward Mountain , E Wolfpen Gap; 35.3606°N, - 83.1037°W; 1 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, M. Lowder leg.; MCH 02_177; • 9♀; Mull Creek on Caney Fork Road , 11 mi. E Hwy 107; 35.3417°N, - 83.0292°W; 11 Aug. 1992; M. Hedin leg.; • 2♀; Rich Mountain, SE Sugar Creek Gap ; 35.2907°N, - 83.004°W; 1 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_179; • ♂; SW of Rich Mountain Bald, 0.5 mi E Sugar Creek Gap; 35.2915°N, - 83.006°W; 26 Jun. 1992; B. Dellinger leg.; • ♀; SW of Rich Mountain Bald, 0.5 mi E Sugar Creek Gap; 35.2915°N, - 83.006°W; 17 Apr. 1994; M. Hedin, B. Dellinger leg.; • 7♀; Wolf Creek at Cullowhee Creek , off Cullowhee Mountain Road ; 35.2468°N, - 83.1843°W; 11 Aug. 1992; M. Hedin leg.; - Transylvania Co. • ♀; along West Fork French Broad River , Silverstein Road, 2 mi. N Hwy 64; 35.1573°N, - 82.8758°W; 19 Aug. 2007; M. Hedin, M. McCormack, S. Derkarabetian leg.; MCH 07_128; • ♀; below Connestee Falls , off Hwy 276 S Brevard; 35.1647°N, - 82.7319°W; 2 Oct. 1992; B. Dellinger leg.; • ♂, 2♀; Hwy 215, 4.7 mi. NW Balsam Grove along Bald Knob branch; 35.2568°N, - 82.9098°W; 13 Aug. 1992; M. Hedin leg.; • 5♀; Hwy 215, S Pinhook Gap; 35.2575°N, - 82.9204°W; 22 Aug. 2004; M. Hedin, R. Keith, J. Starrett, S. Thomas leg.; MCH 04_073; • 2♀, 1 imm; Hwy 276 at Davidson River , opposite Stillwater Branch; 35.284°N, - 82.7591°W; 28 Aug. 2001; M. Hedin, M. Lowder, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 01_180; • 4♀; Hwy 276 at Davidson River , opposite Stillwater Branch; 35.284°N, - 82.7591°W; 4 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, M. Lowder, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_192; • ♀; Hwy 276, Looking Glass Creek just N Looking Glass Falls ; 35.2978°N, - 82.7676°W; 19 Aug. 2007; M. McCormack, S. Derkarabetian leg.; MCH 07_129; • ♀; Hwy 281, E Owens Gap; 35.1957°N, - 82.9608°W; 20 Aug. 2004; M. Hedin, R. Keith, J. Starrett, S. Thomas leg.; MCH 04_071; • ♀, 1 imm; N Fork French Broad, FR 140 off Hwy 215; 35.2503°N, - 82.889°W; 4 Sep. 2002; M. Hedin, M. Lowder, P. Paquin leg.; MCH 02_189.

Diagnosis.

Males may be distinguished from other members of the species group by the palp with a uniquely shaped tegular apophysis (except in comparison to Nesticus brimleyi ), combined with a narrow-based paracymbial dorsal process (Fig. 31A, C ) which differs greatly from N. brimleyi . The N. nasicus epigynum is very similar to N. brimleyi and N. templetoni . When viewed dorsally all possess “crinkled” sac-shaped structures above (anterior to) the main epigynal plate, which we hypothesize are homologous to vulval pockets (Vp) as seen in Japanese Nesticus ( Suzuki and Ballarin 2020). Further diagnostic features for N. nasicus are discussed in Coyle and McGarity (1992).

Variation.

Notable variation exists in the shape of the dorsal process of the paracymbium, which is sometimes narrow and finger-like ( Coyle and McGarity 1992: figs 1, 2), or fishtailed (Fig. 31A-D ), with variation in the shape of the end of the process. Both the distomedial and dorsomedial paracymbial processes vary in presence across populations, with a distomedial process found in West Fork Pigeon River and Cowee Mountain males ( Coyle and McGarity 1992: fig. 2), and a dorsomedial process found only in Cowee Mountain males; these processes are lacking in males from other populations. As discussed below similar population-level variation in these processes is observed in Nesticus templetoni . The shape of both the lateral and apical processes of the median apophysis also varies across populations (Fig. 31A-D ).

Epigyna vary across sample locations in the length of the projection of the median septum, the shape of the epigynal pockets (though generally spherical), the width of epigynal pocket lateral hoods, and the length of the spermathecae (Fig. 32A-H ).

Distribution and natural history.

Previously known only from two locations but now known to be reasonably widespread in the Great Balsam and Pisgah Mountains southwest of Asheville North Carolina, west of the Asheville Basin (Fig. 30 ). The southeastern Connestee Falls population, found east of the French Broad River, is a geographic outlier.

Remarks.

No obvious phylogeographic trends are apparent in the mitochondrial data, with geographically separate locations seemingly less genetically divergent than in other similarly widespread taxa (Fig. 6 ). This is particularly striking considering the notable male morphological variation observed across populations.

Figures

Figure 6. COI IQT gene tree. Distant outgroups trimmed. Specimen numbers correspond to those in Suppl. material 3 (with detailed location provided in Suppl. material 1). Sequences from UCE capture denoted with " NODE ". Populations with a " Nesticus cooperi - like " male paracymbium denoted by small circles. Not all tip bootstrap values shown (see Suppl. material 4 for. tre file with all bootstrap values).

Figure 30. Distribution of Nesticus nasicus group species. Type localities designated with yellow circles. Primary cities shown for geographic context. Dashed lines circumscribe known species distributions; possible distribution of Nesticus secretus is tentative, see text for details.

Figure 31. Nesticus nasicus ♂ palps. North Carolina, Transylvania Co., Hwy 215, NW of Balsam Grove, MCH specimen # 1155, dorsal (A), ventral (B). North Carolina, Haywood Co., along West Fork Pigeon River, MCH 02 _ 190, dorsal (C), ventral (D). Scale bar: 0.5 mm.

Figure 32. Nesticus nasicus epigynal variation. North Carolina, Haywood Co., along West Fork Pigeon River, MCH 02 _ 190, ventral (A), dorsal (B). North Carolina, Jackson Co., Coward Mountain, E of Wolfpen Gap, MCH 02 _ 177, ventral (C), dorsal (D). North Carolina, Transylvania Co., Hwy 276 at Davidson River, MCH 02 _ 192, ventral (E), dorsal (F). North Carolina, Transylvania Co., Hwy 215, NW of Balsam Grove, MCH specimen # 1157, ventral (G), dorsal (H). Scale bar: 0.5 mm.