Maghreba saghro, Huber, 2022

Huber, Bernhard A., 2022, Revisions of Holocnemus and Crossopriza: the spotted-leg clade of Smeringopinae (Araneae, Pholcidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 795 (1), pp. 1-241 : 67-72

Maghreba saghro gen. et sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:6CB9CA32-D460-48FA-BBA7-419353040F8F

Figs 163B , 195 , 203–223

Diagnosis

Easily distinguished from known congeners by serrated ventral margin of distal bulbal sclerite ( Figs 211, 213 ); also by combination of: procursus with short ventral sclerite ( Fig. 210 ); epigynum short and wide, without processes ( Figs 218–220 ), dorsal arc of internal female genitalia without pair of posterior protrusions ( Fig. 222 ); from most known congeners (except M. amezyan gen. et sp. nov. and M. kahfa gen. et sp. nov.) also by long legs (male tibia 1 length>9.0; female tibia 1 length>8.5).

Etymology

The species name is derived from Djebel (Jbel) Saghro (see Distribution below); noun in apposition.

Type material

Holotype MOROCCO – Souss-Massa • ♂; between Irherm and Tiferki, near road R106; 30.1406° N, 8.3337° W; 1745 m a.s.l.; 16 Sep. 2018; B.A. Huber leg.; among rocks and boulders; ZFMK Ar 22362.

Other material examined

MOROCCO – Souss-Massa • 2 ♂♂, 6 ♀♀; same collection data as for holotype; ZFMK Ar 22363, Ar 22364 • 2 ♀♀ (in pure ethanol); same collection data as for holotype; ZFMK Mor 86 • 1 ♂, 2 ♀♀; SE of Tazenakht ; 30.534° N, 7.020° W; 1200 m a.s.l.; 17 Sep. 2018; B.A. Huber leg.; along dry riverbed; ZFMK Ar 22365 • 3 ♀♀ (in pure ethanol); same collection data as for preceding; ZFMK Mor 89 • 1 ♀; between Tazenakht and Agdz , near road R108; 30.531° N, 6.923° W; 1365 m a.s.l.; 17 Sep. 2018; B.A. Huber leg.; under rock; ZFMK Ar 22366 .

Description

Male (holotype)

MEASUREMENTS. Total length 4.6, carapace width 1.65. Distance PME–PME 140 µm; diameter PME 110 × 130 µm; distance PME–ALE 30 µm; diameter AME 100 µm; distance AME–AME 25 µm. Leg 1: 39.1 (11.6 + 0.8 + 10.5 + 13.9 + 2.3), tibia 2: 7.3, tibia 3: 5.7, tibia 4: 6.4; tibia 1 L/d: 58; femora 1–4 diameters: 0.30, 0.24, 0.21, 0.22.

COLOR (in ethanol). Carapace pale ochre-yellow, medially darker (brown); sternum dark ochre, with darker radial marks; legs ochre-yellow, without dark rings, with black lines on femora and tibiae, very few also on metatarsi; abdomen gray, with distinct dorsal mark around heart area and indistinct dorsal and lateral marks; ventrally with large dark brown mark in front of gonopore, median dark band behind gonopore not reaching spinnerets, dark brown mark around spinnerets.

BODY. Habitus as in Fig. 195 . Ocular area slightly raised. Deep thoracic pit and pair of shallow furrows diverging from pit toward posterior margin. Clypeus unmodified but rim more sclerotized than in female. Sternum wider than long (1.20/0.75), unmodified.Abdomen slightly elongated, dorso-posteriorly weakly angular.

CHELICERAE. As in Figs 214–215 , with low frontal hump proximally and pair of frontal lateral apophyses distally, each with one large modified cone-shaped hair at tip; distance between tips of modified hairs: 580 µm; lateral stridulatory ridges very fine, barely visible in dissecting microscope.

PALPS. As is Figs 203–205 ; coxa with distinct retrolateral-ventral process; trochanter barely modified, slightly protruding ventrally; femur not curved towards dorsal, distally widened with very low rounded ventral protrusion, proximally with prolateral stridulatory pick (modified hair), with barely visible retrolateral transversal line, with distinct retrolateral-ventral proximal process and small dorsal process; femur-patella joints slightly shifted toward prolateral side; tibia relatively long and slender, tibia-tarsus joints shifted toward retrolateral side; tarsus without macrotrichia; procursus ( Figs 208–210 ) with few hairs slightly curved upwards; on prolateral side with strong hairless hump, procursus tip strongly curved towards dorsal, with strong ventral sclerite and semitransparent process; genital bulb ( Figs 211–213 ) basal sclerite with distinct dorsal apophysis; distal (main) sclerite large, with deep retrolateral pocket, distinct ventral serration; sperm duct opening not seen.

LEGS. Femur 1 with single row of ~25ventral spines; without curved hairs; with more than usual vertical hairs on all tibiae (dorsally and laterally); retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 3.5%; prolateral trichobothrium absent on tibia 1, present on other leg tibiae; tarsal pseudosegments irregular, very indistinct.

Male (variation)

Tibia 1 in three other males: 9.3, 10.1, 10.5.

Female

In general similar to male but without spines on legs, with usual very low number of short vertical hairs on leg tibiae. With pair of very indistinct light humps posteriorly on carapace, corresponding plates frontally on abdomen not seen; with fine cheliceral stridulatory ridges as in male. Tibia 1 in nine females: 8.7–10.0 (mean 9.3). Epigynum as in Figs 218–220 , main epigynal plate large relative to abdomen, wider than long, weakly protruding, without processes; medially weakly sclerotized except small brown plate anteriorly; with pair of variably distinct pockets (distance between pockets 500–530 µm); internal sclerotized arc and median round structure variably visible in uncleared specimens; posterior plate short and wide, simple; pair of indistinct narrow plates in front of epigynum, not elevated. Internal genitalia ( Figs 216–217 , 221–223 ) with elongated pore plates, contiguous and in transversal position; dorsal and ventral arcs medially strongly sclerotized, ventral arc with simple ventral process (pocket?) directly ‘below’ (i.e., dorsal of) epigynal plate.

Natural history

Between Irherm and Tiferki, this species was found among large rocks and boulders on a dry slope and in a small canyon; at the same place, M. aurouxi gen. nov. occupied a small cave. In other places, the spiders were found in washed-out sand cavities along a dry riverbed (SE of Tazenakht) and under a rock (between Tazenakht and Agdz).

Distribution

Known from three localities in the Djebel (Jbel) Saghro range of the Moroccan Atlas ( Fig. 163B ).

Figures

Fig. 163. Known distribution of Maghreba gen. nov. A. Complete known distribution, including an undescribed Algerian species in CRB; the approximate extent of the Atlas Mountains is shown (1000 m altitude isolines, taken from https://www.britannica.com/). B. Known distributions of named species. Asterisk: specimens tentatively assigned to M. aurouxi gen. nov.

Figs 195–202. Maghreba gen. nov., live specimens.195. M. saghro gen. et sp. nov., male from Morocco, between Irherm and Tiferki. 196–198. M. stifadma gen. et sp. nov., male and female from Morocco, Setti-Fatma. 199–202. M. nkob gen. et sp. nov., male and female from Morocco, E of Nkob.

Figs 203–207. Maghreba saghro gen. et sp. nov.; male from Morocco, between Irherm and Tiferki (ZFMK Ar 22363). 203–205. Left male palp, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrow 1: coxa apophysis; arrow 2: dorsal femur apophysis; arrows 3: femur-patella joints; arrows 4: tibia-tarsus joints. 206–207. Male femora 1 and 2. Scale bars: 203–205 = 0.5 mm; 206–207 = 0.3 mm.

Figs 208–217. Maghreba saghro gen. et sp. nov.; male and female from Morocco, between Irherm and Tiferki (ZFMK Ar 22363, Ar 22364). 208–210. Left procursus, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrow: semitransparent process. 211–213. Left genital bulb, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrow: deep pocket. 214–215. Male chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. 216–217. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views; arrows: pockets (pits). Abbreviations: bs = basal sclerite; da = dorsal apophysis; dp = dorsal process; ph = prolateral hump; pt = procursus tip; vs = ventral sclerite. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Figs 218–223. Maghreba saghro gen. et sp. nov.; female from Morocco, between Irherm and Tiferki (ZFMK Ar 22364). 218. Abdomen, ventral view. 219–220. Epigynum, lateral and ventral views. 221– 223. Cleared female genitalia, ventral view, regular dorsal view, and dorsal view with dorsal arc tilted backwards; arrows: pockets (pits).Abbreviations: da = dorsal arc; va = ventral arc. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.