Smeringopina luki, Huber, Bernhard A., 2013

Huber, Bernhard A., 2013, Revision and cladistic analysis of the Guineo-Congolian spider genus Smeringopina Kraus (Araneae, Pholcidae, Zootaxa 3713 (1), pp. 1-160 : 39-40

Smeringopina luki new species

Figs. 533–540 , 621–626

Type. ♂ holotype from Congo D.R., Bas Congo Province, Luki Forest Reserve (5°37.3’S, 13°05.9’E), central zone, by hand, 26.–27.ix.2007 (W. Hubau), in MRAC (222155 part).

Other material examined. CONGO D.R.: Bas Congo: Luki Forest Reserve, 1♀ together with holotype; same data, 1♀ in MRAC (222232); same locality, along trail near guest house, by hand, 18.–19.ix.2007 (W. Hubau), 1♂ in MRAC (222141); same locality, primary rainforest, by hand, 20.ix.2007 (D. de Bakker, J.P. Michiels, W. Hubau), 1♀ in MRAC (223577). Weka [5°42.1’S, 12°35.4’E], viii.1937 (E. Dartevelle), 1♀ in MRAC (26854).

Etymology. The name is a noun in apposition, derived from the type locality.

Diagnosis. Easily distinguished from similar congeners (large species with long abdomen, cone-shaped modified hairs on male chelicerae, simple unbranched procursus) by distinctively wide procursus ( Figs. 621–622 ), sclerotized rod-shaped embolus ( Fig. 624 ), and medially protruding rim of anterior epigynal plate ( Figs. 539 , 625 ).

Male (holotype). Total body length 7.8, carapace width 1.9. Leg 1: 83.6 (18.9 + 0.8 + 18.7 + 41.3 + 3.9), tibia 2 missing, tibia 3: 8.7, tibia 4: 11.1; tibia 1 L/d: 101. Distance PME-PME 175 µm, diameter PME 185 µm, distance PME-ALE 70 µm, distance AME-AME 60 µm, diameter AME 160 µm. Carapace ochre-yellow with brown triangular mark posteriorly and brown lateral margins, whitish behind ocular area; ocular area brown, clypeus brown in lower half, sternum dark brown; legs ochre-yellow, slightly darker rings subdistally on femora and tibiae and in patella area, tips of femora and tibiae whitish; abdomen ochre-gray with distinct black pattern dorsally, laterally, and ventrally. Habitus as in Figs. 534–535 , ocular area slightly elevated, secondary eyes with distinct ‘pseudo-lenses’; clypeus unmodified but with longer than usual hairs; deep thoracic pit and pair of shallow furrows diverging behind pit. Chelicerae as in Fig. 623 , with lateral proximal apophyses and distal apophyses, the latter and frontal cheliceral face provided with several small modified (cone-shaped) hairs. Palps as in Figs. 536–538 ; coxa unmodified; trochanter with retrolatero-ventral apophysis; femur proximally with ventral sclerotized ridge, without or with very indistinct shallow pocket, with small retrolateral apophysis, without prolateral modification; prolateral femur-patella joint strongly shifted toward ventrally; tarsus with several strong hairs dorsally; procursus very wide, with very indistinct hinge between proximal and distal part ( Figs. 621–622 ); bulb with rod-shaped, sclerotized embolus ( Fig. 624 ). Legs without spines and curved hairs, with few vertical hairs (most hairs missing), retrolateral trichobothrium on tibia 1 at 1%; prolateral trichobothrium present on all tibiae; pseudosegments barely visible.

Variation. Tibia 1 in second male: 18.4.

Female. In general similar to male. Tibia 1 in 2 females: 14.0, 16.7 (missing in other females). Epigynum consisting of large anterior plate with distinctively protruding rim, and arc-shaped posterior plate ( Figs. 539–540 ); internal genitalia as in Figs. 533 and 626 .

Distribution. Known from two localities in Bas-Congo Province, Congo D.R. ( Fig. 468 ).

Figures

FIGURE 468. Known distribution of the simplex species group. The square in western Cameroon denotes the probably misidentified juvenile paralectotypes of S. africana (Thorell) from Kitta in NHRS.

FIGURES 525 – 533. Cleared female genitalia in dorsal view, simplex group. 525. Smeringopina camerunensis Kraus. 526. S. djidji n. sp. 527. S. ogooue n. sp. 528. S. bioko n. sp. 529. S. etome n. sp. 530. S. africana (Thorell). 531. S. simplex Kraus. 532. S. bwiti n. sp. 533. S. luki n. sp.

FIGURES 534 – 540. Smeringopina luki n. sp. 534 – 535. Male, dorsal and ventral views. 536 – 538. Left male palp, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views. 539 – 540. Female abdomen, ventral and lateral views.

FIGURES 621 – 626. Smeringopina luki n. sp. 621 – 622. Left procursus, prolateral and retrolateral views. 623. Male chelicerae, frontal view. 624. Left embolus, prolateral view. 625. Epigynum, ventral view. 626. Cleared female genitalia, dorsal view. Scale lines: 0.5 (621 – 624), 1.0 (625 – 626).