Drassodella lotzi, Mbo & Haddad, 2019

Mbo, Zingisile & Haddad, Charles R., 2019, A revision of the endemic South African long-jawed ground spider genus Drassodella Hewitt, 1916 (Araneae: Gallieniellidae), Zootaxa 4582 (1), pp. 1-62 : 22-24

Drassodella lotzi sp. nov.

Figs 62 , 97 , 121, 122

Etymology. Named in honour of Dr Leon Lotz, former head of Arachnology at the National Museum in Bloemfontein, who collected the holotype.

Diagnosis. Drassodella lotzi sp. nov. females are easily recognised by their ST II that nearly reach the posterior margin of the anterior hood, being separated by less than the length of the hood ( Fig. 62 ), while other species in the D. melana group have a separation of the length of the hood or more (e.g. Figs 63–69 ). Further, the lateral hoods are round rather than cup-shaped, as is the case in other species of the group. Male unknown.

Description. Female (Holotype, Enseleni Game Reserve, NMBA 9333). Measurements: CL 2.12, CW 1.56, AL 2.84, AW 1.46, TL 5.32, FL 0.32, SL 1.14, SW 0.96, CH 0.06, AME-AME 0.06, AME-ALE 0.02, ALE-ALE 0.20, PME-PME 0.08, PME-PLE 0.10, PLE-PLE 0.36, PERW 0.43, MOQAW 0.14, MOQPW 0.19, MOQL 0.24.

Length of leg segments: I 1.44 + 0.82 + 1.16 + 1.04 + 0.84 = 5.30, II 1.40 + 0.74 + 0.98 + 0.98 + 0.80 = 4.90,

III 1.24 + 0.64 + 0.88 + 1.12 + 0.82 = 4.70, IV 2.00 + 0.82 + 1.44 + 1.96 + 0.92 = 7.14.

General appearance as in Fig. 97 . Carapace brown, black radiating mottling from the centre; white setae scattered across surface, faint medial white line diverging posteriorly forming upsilon shape with few erect setae from fovea to posterior margin. Clypeus height equal to AME diameter; AME equal to ALE; AME separated by distance equal to their diameter, AME separated from ALE by distance equal to 0.33 AME diameter; PME smaller than PLE; PME separated by distance equal to 1.33 their diameter, PME separated from PLE by distance equal to 1.67 PME diameter. Chelicerae dark brown anteriorly, orange around fangs, light brown posteriorly; promargin with three very small teeth, median tooth largest; retromargin with one tooth. Endites yellow to orange, brown medially, pale around maxillar hair tuft; labium brown, anterior margin orange, as broad as long. Sternum orangebrown. Legs dark brown proximally, light brown distally; leg segments with few white feathery setae, only tibia of leg I with many white setae medially. Leg spination: femora: I do 2 rl 1, II do 1, III do 3 rl 1, IV do 2 rl 2; patellae: spineless; tibiae: I & II spineless, III pl 2 do 2 rl 2 plv 2 rlv 2 vt 2, IV pl 2 do 2 rl 2 plv 2 rlv 2 vt 2; metatarsi: I & II spineless, III pl 4 rl 4 plv 3 rlv 3, IV pl 2 do 1 rl 4 plv 2 rlv 2 vt 2; palpal spination: femora: do 3; patellae, tibiae and tarsi spineless. Abdomen grey-brown ( Fig. 97 ), dorsal and lateral surfaces with dotted mottling; small dorsal scutum on anterior margin; two anterior sigilla present, elongate lateral sclerites above booklungs present. Venter light brown; two lines of tiny sclerites from epigastric fold to spinnerets; lateral and post-epigastric sclerites very small. Spinnerets light brown. Epigyne with deep anterior hood, anterior margin convex and rounded, posterior margin convex, lateral ends gradually tapering to narrow ridges; lateral hoods round; ST II yellow-brown, connecting ducts and ST I orange; ST I and II similar in size, ST II elongate, nearly reaching posterior margin of anterior hood ( Figs 62 , 121, 122 ).

Type material. Holotype ♀: SOUTH AFRICA: KwaZulu-Natal Province: Enseleni Game Reserve, Lower Umfolozi , 28°42'S, 31°59'E, 12.XII.1994, leg. L. Lotz ( NMBA 9333 ).

Distribution. Only known from the type locality ( Fig. 125 ).

Figures

FIGURE 125. Distribution of Drassodella flava sp. nov. (circles), D. guttata sp. nov. (star), D. lotzi sp. nov. (square) and D. maculata sp. nov. (triangle) in southern Africa.

FIGURES 60–77. Female epigynes of Drassodella species in the D. melana species group (60–68) and D. salisburyi species group (69–77) in dorsal view: 60 D. flava sp. nov.; 61 D. guttata sp. nov.; 62 D. lotzi sp. nov.; 63 D. maculata sp. nov.; 64 D. melana Tucker, 1923; 65 D. montana sp. nov.; 66 D. tenebrosa Lawrence, 1938; 67 D. tolkieni sp. nov.; 68 D. transversa sp. nov.; 69 D. venda sp. nov.; 70 D. amatola sp. nov.; 71 D. aurostriata sp. nov.; 72 D. purcelli Tucker, 1923; 73 D. quinquelabecula Tucker, 1923; 74 D. salisburyi Hewitt, 1916; 75 D. septemmaculata (Strand, 1909); 76 D. trilineata sp. nov.; 77 D. vasivulva Tucker, 1923. Abbreviations: AH—anterior hood; FD—fertilisation duct; MS—median septum; STspermatheca(e). Scale bars = 0.25 mm.

FIGURES 93–110. Dorsal habitus photographs of Drassodella species in the melana species group: 93, 94 female and male of D. flava sp. nov.; 95, 96 female and male of D. guttata sp. nov.; 97 female of D. lotzi sp. nov.; 98 female of D. maculata sp. nov.; 99, 100 female and male of D. melana Tucker, 1923; 101, 102 female and male of D. montana sp. nov.; 103, 104 female and male of D. tenebrosa Lawrence, 1938; 105, 106 female and male of D. tolkieni sp. nov.; 107, 108 female and male of D. transversa sp. nov.; 109, 110 female and male of D. venda sp. nov. Scale bars = 1 mm.

FIGURES 121–124. Genitalic morphology of Drassodella lotzi sp. nov. (121, 122) and D. maculata sp. nov. (123, 124): 121, 123 female epigyne, ventral view; 122, 124 same, dorsal view. Scale bars = 0.25 mm.