Sarax moultoni ( Gravely, 1915 ) Miranda & Giupponi & Prendini & Scharff, 2021

Miranda, Gustavo Silva de, Giupponi, Alessandro P. L., Prendini, Lorenzo & Scharff, Nikolaj, 2021, Systematic revision of the pantropical whip spider family Charinidae Quintero, 1986 (Arachnida, Amblypygi), European Journal of Taxonomy 772, pp. 1-409 : 193-194

Sarax moultoni ( Gravely, 1915) comb. nov., nomen dubium

Table 8

Stygophrynus moultoni Gravely, 1915b: 443–444 , fig. 9.

Stygophrynus moultoni – Giltay 1931: 24–25. — Mello-Leitão 1931: 54. — Werner 1935: fig. 177a. — Quintero 1986: 207, figs 2, 8. — Rahmadi & Harvey 2008: 281–282, 286–287.

Stygophrynus Neocharon moultoni – Dunn 1949: 11. — Harvey 2003: 10. — Rahmadi et al. 2010: 1, 6, 19; 2011: 223, 225.

Etymology

Although unspecified, the name is evidently a patronym honoring Mr Moulton, who donated the holotype to Gravely (1915b).

Type material

Holotype INDONESIA • ♂; Klingkang summit [Klingkang Range], between Sarawak (Malaysia) and West Kalimantan (Indonesia); BMNH [not examined].

Remarks

In a key to the species of Stygophrynus Kraepelin, 1895 , Gravely (1915b: 443) stated that the “armature of [the] hand [tibia] of S. moultoni consists of two long dorsal spines and one ventral one only” whereas, for all other species, Gravely (1915b: 443) stated that the “hand [is] armed above and below with one long spine succeeded by a series of short spines which increase in length distally”. The former spine configuration is typical of Charinidae and the latter is typical of Charontidae , suggesting that S. moultoni is a charinid. Gravely (1915b: 444) further noted that S. moultoni possesses three dorsal spines on the pedipalp tarsus: “the finger is armed above with three-minute tooth-like spinules”.

Specimens from the vicinity of the type locality of S. moultoni (e.g., AMCC [LP 12168, 12169]) exhibit characters consistent with Gravely’s (1915b) diagnosis of S. moultoni , e.g., high numbers of spines on the pedipalp patella and three spines on the pedipalp tarsus, characters which are also diagnostic for S. yayukae . Therefore, S. moultoni may be a senior synonym of S. yayukae . Rahmadi et al. (2010) also suggested that S. moultoni might be a charinid. The holotype of S. moultoni must be examined to confirm the synonymy; however, Rahmadi et al. (2010) suggested it may be lost. Until that is established with certainty, it is appropriate to transfer S. moultoni to the genus Sarax based on the evidence available. Due to the lack of characters in the literature allowing a precise identification of the species and the lack of type material, it is suggested here that the species is a nomen dubium until further clarification of its taxonomy.

Quintero (1986) provided two SEM images of the pedipalp patella and tarsus of a specimen from Sebesi, Sumatra, Indonesia, identified as S. moultoni . However, the spination of that specimen differs considerably from what was described and illustrated by Gravely (1915b) for S. moultoni . The specimen illustrated by Quintero (1986) is congeneric with Catageus , a senior synonym of Stygophrynus , but cannot be assigned to any known species based on the characters provided.