Tayshaneta Ledford & Griswold, in Ledford et al. 2011

Ledford, Joel, Paquin, Pierre, Cokendolpher, James, Campbell, Josh & Griswold, Charles, 2012, Systematics, conservation and morphology of the spider genus Tayshaneta (Araneae, Leptonetidae) in Central Texas Caves, ZooKeys 167, pp. 1-102 : 15-16

Tayshaneta Ledford & Griswold, in Ledford et al. 2011

Leptoneta Simon 1872 (in part); Chamberlin and Ivie 1942 (in part); Gertsch 1974 (in part).

Neoleptoneta Brignoli 1972 (in part); Brignoli 1977 (in part); Platnick 1986 (in part); Cokendolpher and Reddell 2001 (in part); Cokendolpher 2004 (in part); Ledford et al. 2011 (in part).

Tayshaneta Ledford and Griswold, in Ledford et al. 2011: 334-388

Type species.

Leptoneta coeca Chamberlin & Ivie, 1942.

Nomen dubium.

Leptoneta furtiva (Gertsch, 1974) is described on on the basis of a single female specimen from Blackwell, Nolan County, Texas. The holotype is in poor condition, missing most of its appendages and genitalia. Efforts to recollect the species at the type locality have proven unsuccessful and the lack of diagnostic features prevents its diagnosis from any other Tayshaneta species. Leptoneta uvaldea (Gertsch, 1974) was described from Story Cave, Uvalde County, Texas, based on a single female specimen. While the holotype is in good condition, the genitalia are damaged and it cannot be separated from any other Tayshaneta species. Furthermore, the type locality, Story Cave, is widely recognized as a lost cave somewhere on the Marneldo Ranch (A. Gluesenkamp, pers. comm.). Given their lack of diagnostic features, both species are declared nomena dubia until additional specimens near the type localities can be obtained.

Diagnosis.

Tayshaneta is separated from all other leptonetids by having males with a recurved to straight retrolateral spine on the palpal tibia (Figs 32 A–F) and females with short spermathecal stalks bearing large circular to oval heads (Figs 52-54).

Putative synapomorphies.

Species of Tayshaneta are united by the unique conformation of the female genitalia, with short spermathecal stalks bearing large heads (Figs 52-54) and the recurved to straight retrolateral spine on the male palpal tibia (Figs 32 A–F).

Description.

Total length 1.0-1.98. Carapace depigmented to orange-brown; oval and covered by fine, irregular sculpturing which refracts light producing a distinctive iridescence (Figs 10A, C), sparsely setose, length 0.88-1.8 × width. Eyes present, reduced, or absent with the PME displaced posteriad of the AEG (Fig. 10B), elevated to flattened in lateral profile (Fig. 10E); chelicerae free and with lateral stridulatory file (Fig. 10E). Sternum triangular to subquadrate (Fig. 10D); abdomen pale yellow to dark brown, lacking distinctive pattern. Colulus triangular, ALS cylindrical, PMS and PLS comb-like, with a linear row of 6-10 aciniform gland spigots (Figs 11 A–C). Legs elongate and thin, femur I 1.0 –2.26× carapace length; formula I, IV, II, III, covered in fine setae and with few scattered spines; patellar and tibial glands triangular with single, large pores; metatarsus III with ventroapical preening comb. Male palpal tarsus divided or tapering apically, with a middorsal division (Figs 31 A–F); tibia with a single recurved to straight retrolateral spine on an elevated base surrounded by elongate setae and 2-4 paddle-shaped setae (Figs 32 A–F); palpal bulb oval, longer than wide, with an apically situated embolus (E, Figs 33-51) and an oval prolateral lobe (PL, Figs 33-51); ventral sclerite present (VS, Figs 33, 37, 39-41, 44-50) or absent (Figs 34-36, 38, 42, 43, 51), consisting of a single spine; retrolateral sclerite present or absent, curved and weakly invaginated to oval (RS, Figs 39-41, 49-50) or distinctly separated from the bulb (RS, Fig. 51); tarsal organ circular, shallow and with a pair of receptors. Female genitalia (Figs 52-54) consisting of a single oval to triangular atrium with a pair of lateral spermathecae bearing large, circular (Figs 52A, C–F; 53 A–B, D–F; 54 A–C, E) to elongate heads (Figs 53C, 54D) that are covered in fine pores.

Composition.

Nineteen species, ten of which are described in this paper:

Tayshaneta anopica (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta archambaulti sp. n., Tayshaneta bullis (Cokendolpher, 2004), Tayshaneta coeca (Chamberlin & Ivie, 1942), Tayshaneta concinna (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta devia (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta emeraldae sp. n., Tayshaneta fawcetti sp. n., Tayshaneta grubbsi sp. n., Tayshaneta madla sp. n., Tayshaneta microps (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta myopica (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta oconnorae sp. n., Tayshaneta paraconcinna (Cokendolpher & Reddell, 2001), Tayshaneta sandersi , sp. n., Tayshaneta sprousei sp. n., Tayshaneta valverdae (Gertsch, 1974), Tayshaneta vidrio sp. n., Tayshaneta whitei sp. n.

Distribution.

Central to West Texas (Figs 3, 56-61).