Phintelloides Kanesharatnam & Benjamin, 2019

Deeleman-Reinhold, Christa L., Addink, Wouter & Miller, Jeremy A., 2024, The genera Chrysilla and Phintelloides revisited with the description of a new species (Araneae, Salticidae) using digital specimen DOIs and nanopublications, Biodiversity Data Journal 12, pp. e 129438-e 129438 : e129438-

Phintelloides Kanesharatnam & Benjamin, 2019

World Spider Catalog: urn:lsid:nmbe.ch:spidergen:04527

Phintelloides Kanesharatnam & Benjamin, 2019 - Kanesharatnam and Benjamin 2019: 20.

Chrysilla jesudasi ( Caleb & Mathai, 2014) Kanesharatnam and Benjamin 2019: 20.

Diagnosis

Kanesharatnam and Benjamin 2019 (p. 22) diagnose the genus as follows: male with white tuft of flattened setae on the clypeus; white diamond-shaped mark behind the eye field; prosoma with pale yellow / white transverse band behind AME; abdomen with blackish or brownish grey, longitudinal median band bordered by pale yellow bands (or devoid of markings). In addition, they noted the presence of a comparatively long embolus in males; the apical portion of the bulbus with a lamellar process (although this is absent in some including P. jesudasi , P. brunne , and P. scandens, CLD ); and the bird’s-neck-shaped diverging curves at anterior margin of epigynum. Furthermore, Phintelloides have white belt markings on the lateral prosoma, the leg I slightly robust in males, and male pedipalps featuring a small posterior lobe and a long RTA with a bent tip. Females have black patches on the eye field and surrounding PME, behind PLE, and on the posterior slope of the prosoma. In the female genitalia, CO oriented laterally outwards; CD medium-to-very long and bent or twisted; spermatheca pyriform or spherical.

We consider the above diagnosis difficult to interpret from a defining point of view. Several of the listed character states are not compared to that in related genera and some are not valid for all species. Diagnostic somatic characters for the genera involved can be found above in the diagnosis section for the genus Chrysilla , where different states of 10 main cognitive characters between Chrysilla and related genera are summarized. Here we restrict ourselves to adding a few aspects we consider useful. In female Phintelloides species, carapace pattern allegedly is distinctive viz. black and white pattern with 3 pairs of black eye spots (Fig. 10 a , c ). Indeed this character is found in females of P. jesudasi , P. arborea and P. flavumi but not in P. brunne , P. flavoviri or P. orbisa , or the species described below, P. scandens sp. nov. A similar pattern is also found in females of Phintella piatensis Barrion and Litsinger 1995 , and it possible that this species fits in the genus Phintelloides . In males, the basal part of etb seems to be attached dorsally and is hidden underneath the tegulum; this can only be ascertained by probing the palp manually. Epigyna with a bird’s neck curve (bnc) are, unlike any other salticid genus except Chrysilla , suggestive of a specialised copulatory system.

A “ white moustache ” turns up seemingly at random in various chrysilline genera and is inconvenient as a tool when identifying genera. In Phintelloides scandens sp. nov. males it is lacking (Fig. 15 a ), although females have a tuft of white setae in front of the AME (Fig. 15 b ).

Phintelloides versicolor and P. munita are morphologically at the edge of the genus because the copulatory organs deviate from all other species by the following characters: the tegulum is undivided and distally bulgy and rigid, the prolateral margin is concave in ventral view; the tegular proximal lobe (pl) is broad and round, the filiform embolus is shorter than that in all known species of Phintelloides and at the base curved over 90 °. Females of> versicolor and munita are distinct from other related species by the pair of characteristic black curled marks on white background on the rear part of the carapace (Fig. 17 b , e ). Furthermore, these females are quite distinct from those of Phintelloides and Phintella by the straight copulatory ducts directed anteriorly and, the absence of the bird’s-neck-shaped curves the absence of the atrium; the opening is connected to a single pair of transverse, horizontal hood-like folds running parallel to the anterior edge of the epigyne.

Figures

Figure 10 a. Phintelloides jesudasi (Caleb & Mathai, 2014), female habitus, dorsal view, RMNH. ARA. 18258, scale bar 1 mm

Figure 10 c. Phintelloides flavumi Kanesharatnam & Benjamin, 2019, female habitus, dorsal view, RMNH. ARA. 18250, scale bar 1 mm

Figure 15 a. Phintelloides scandens sp. nov., male prosoma, anterior view, RMNH. ARA. 18255, scale bar 1 mm

Figure 15 b. Phintelloides scandens sp. nov., female prosoma, anterior view, RMNH. ARA. 18257, scale bar 1 mm

Figure 17 b. Phintelloides versicolor (C. L. Koch, 1846), female habitus, dorsal view, CM 19264

Figure 17 e. Phintelloides munita (Bösenberg & Strand, 1906), female habitus, dorsal view, CM 15605