Smeringopus, Simon, 1890

Yao, Zhiyuan, Kioko, Grace M., Kioko, Esther N. & Li, Shuqiang, 2019, Three new species of the spider family Pholcidae (Arachnida: Araneae) from Taita-Taveta, Kenya, Zootaxa 4651 (1), pp. 114-124 : 120-124

Smeringopus voi Yao & Li sp. nov.

Figs 5–7

Type material. Holotype: male (NMK-Ar29682), Tsavo East National Park (3°3.800′S, 38°40.600′E, elev. 396 m), Voi Town, Taita-Taveta County, Kenya, 25 July 2016, G.M. Kioko, Z. Yao and Q. Zhao leg. Paratypes: 2 females (NMK-Ar29683–29684), same data as holotype .

Etymology. The specific name refers to the type locality, and is a noun in apposition.

Diagnosis. This species resembles S. oromia Huber, 2012 (see Huber 2012: 40, figs 173–174, 181, 188–189, 198–199, 225–230) with similar male chelicerae ( Fig. 6E ) and epigynum ( Fig. 6A ) but can be distinguished by procursus with large, curved prolatero-ventral sclerite distally positioned (arrow in Fig. 5C ), bulb with sclerotized dorsal apophysis (arrow in Fig. 6C ) and by females with anterior arch of vulva strongly protruding medially (arrow in Fig. 6B ).

Description. Male (holotype): Total length 3.22 (3.36 with clypeus), carapace 1.14 long, 0.80 wide, opistho- soma 2.08 long, 0.95 wide. Leg I: 24.73 (6.79 + 0.50 + 6.15 + 10.26 + 1.03), leg II: 34.54 (8.97 + 0.50 + 8.65 + 14.87 + 1.55), leg III: 16.36 (4.87 + 0.48 + 3.85 + 6.41 + 0.75), leg IV: 24.26 (7.05 + 0.50 + 6.03 + 9.74 + 0.94); tibia I L/d: 52. Distance PME-PME 0.15; diameter PME 0.08; distance PME-ALE 0.06; distance AME-AME 0.03; diameter AME 0.08. Sternum wider than long (0.75/0.63). Habitus as in Fig. 6F . Carapace yellowish, with median and lateral brown marks; ocular area yellowish; clypeus yellowish, with pair of brown stripes; sternum yellowish, with brownish marks. Legs brownish, but slightly whitish on distal parts of femur and tibiae, with darker rings on subdistal parts of femora and tibiae. Opisthosoma yellowish, with distinctive dark brown pattern. Ocular area slightly elevated, secondary eyes (cf. fig. 215 in Huber 2012) with barely visible ‘pseudo-lenses’; thoracic pit deep. Chelicerae as in Fig. 6E , with pair of small distal apophyses. Pedipalps as in Figs 5 A–B; coxa without retrolateral apophysis; trochanter barely modified; femur with shallow retrolateral furrow (cf. fig. 344 in Huber 2012); cym- bium without projection near tarsal organ; procursus simple proximally but complex distally, with large, curved prolatero-ventral sclerite distally (arrow in Fig. 5C ); bulb with sclerotized embolus and sclerotized dorsal apophysis (arrow in Fig. 6C ). Retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia I at 2%; legs without spines, few vertical setae, with curved setae on metatarsi I–II; prolateral trichobothrium present on tibia I.

Female: Similar to male, habitus as in Figs 6 G–H. Total length 3.80 (4.00 with clypeus), carapace 0.96 long, 1.38 wide, opisthosoma 2.84 long, 1.33 wide; tibia I: 8.97; tibia I L/d: 67. Distance PME-PME 0.16; diameter PME 0.09; distance PME-ALE 0.05; distance AME-AME 0.04; diameter AME 0.09. Sternum wider than long (0.95/0.71). Epigynum ( Fig. 6A ) with simple flat plate, without pockets. Vulva ( Fig. 6B ) with sclerotized anterior arch and pair of large pore plates.

Distribution. Kenya (Taita-Taveta, type locality; Fig. 7 ).

Natural History. The species was found on the rock walls.

Figures

FIGURE 5. Smeringopus voi Yao & Li sp. nov., holotype male.A–B. Flipped right pedipalp (A. Prolateral view; B. Retrolateral view); C–D. Distal part of flipped right procursus (C. Prolateral view, arrow points at large, curved prolatero-ventral sclerite; D. Dorsal view). b = bulb, e = embolus, pr = procursus. Scale bars: 0.10 (A–B), 0.02 (C–D).

FIGURE 6. Smeringopus voi Yao & Li sp. nov., holotype male (C–F) and paratype female (A–B, G–H). A. Epigynum, ventral view; B. Vulva, dorsal view, arrow points at median protrusion; C–D. Flipped right bulb (C. Prolateral view, arrow points at sclerotized dorsal apophysis; D. Dorsal view); E. Chelicerae, frontal view; F–H. Habitus (F–G. Dorsal view; H. Ventral view). b = bulb, da = distal apophysis, e = embolus, pp = pore plate, sd = sperm duct. Scale bars: 0.10 (A–E), 0.50 (F–H).

FIGURE 7. Distribution records of new species from Kenya. 1. Buitinga qingyuani Yao & Li sp. nov.; 2. B. wamitii Yao & Li sp. nov.; 3. Smeringopus voi Yao & Li sp. nov.