Peplometus chlorophthalmus Simon, 1900

Wesolowska, Wanda, Azarkina, Galina N. & Wisniewski, Konrad, 2020, A revision of Pachyballus Simon, 1900 and Peplometus Simon, 1900 (Araneae, Salticidae, Ballini) with descriptions of new species, ZooKeys 944, pp. 47-98 : 47

Peplometus chlorophthalmus Simon, 1900 Figures 131 , 132 , 154-159 , 160-165 , 166-171 , 197

Peplometus chlorophthalmus Simon 1900: 399 (♂); 1901: 482, f. 566-569.

Holotype.

South Africa • ♂; Natal (eastern SA); C. M[artin] [leg.]; MNHN 17 385; examined.

Other material examined.

South Africa • 1♀ 5 imm.; together with the holotype. Congo D.R. • 1♂ 1♀ 1 subad. ♂; Bas Congo, Mayombe, Luki Forest Biosphere Reserve; 5°40'S, 13°10'E; 7.XI.2006; D. De Bakker and J. P. Michiels leg.; beating; MRAC 221 505 • 1♀; the same data; 14.XI.2006; MRAC 219 997 • 1♀; the same data; 8.XI.2006; MRAC 219 944 • 2♀; the same data; 14.XI.2006 and 19.IX.2007; MRAC 226 100 • 1♂ 1♀; the same locality; 24.IX.2007; old secondary rainforest, fogging; MRAC 226 104 • 1♀; the same locality; 29.IX.2007; primary rainforest, fogging; MRAC 226 110 • 2♀; the same data; 5.XI.2006; MRAC 226 118 •1♀; the same data; 11.XI.2006; MRAC 221 583 • 1♀; the same data;12.XI.2006; MRAC 220 954.

Diagnosis.

The tibia of the leg I in male is strongly flattened dorsally (Figs 131 , 158 ). The female is difficult to distinguish from P. biscutellatus , but it has a narrower abdomen (see Diagnosis of the latter species).

Redescription.

Male. Measurements. Cephalothorax: length 1.0-1.5, width 1.1-1.3, height 0.5-0.6. Eye field: length 0.6-0.8, anterior width 1.0-1.2, posterior width 1.2-1.3. Abdomen: length 2.2-2.3, width 1.4-1.5.

General appearance as in Figs 154-156 . Small spider with flattened body. Carapace dark brown to blackish, pitted. White bristles around anterior median eyes and between all eyes of first row. Clypeus low, black, with a few white hairs. Fang of chelicerae short, two small teeth on promargin, retromarginal tooth with four tips (Fig. 160 ). Sternum oval, dark brown. Abdomen narrow, covered with strongly sclerotised, pitted, dark integument. Venter with typical scuta (same as by P. biscutellatus ). Legs yellowish with dark lines along femora and tibiae III and IV on prolateral surface. Legs I the stoutest, tip of prolateral side of femur with small patch, tibia strongly thickened, black with yellow line along dorsum and large light patch on retrolateral side, long flattened black setae ventrally (Figs 157 , 159 ). Tibia I characteristic for having a large flattened part on dorsal side (Figs 131 , 158 ). Pedipalp light, its structure as in Figs 161-164 , embolic coil wide.

Female. Measurements. Cephalothorax: length 1.0-1.4, width 1.1-1.3, height 0.5-0.6. Eye field: length 0.6-0.7, anterior width 1.0-1.2, posterior width 1.2-1.3. Abdomen: length 2.0-2.4, width 1.5-1.8.

Similar to male, general appearance as in Figs 166 , 167 . White hairs at anterior eyes and on posterior carapace slope. Abdomen wider than in male, but relatively narrow, narrower than in P. biscutellatus . Legs darker than in male. Femora of I-III legs brown with yellow ventral surface, femora IV completely brown. Patellae IV with pro- and retrolateral brown stripes. First leg not larger, its tibia black with black long setae ventrally, in some specimens with narrow light streak along dorsum. Tibiae II with prolateral brown stripe, tibiae IV brown with thin yellow longitudinal stripes dorsally and ventrally. Other leg segments light yellow. Palps blackish. Epigyne as in Figs 168 , 169 , rectangular with shallow depression. Ventral structure of epigyne similar to other species, copulatory ducts long, weakly sclerotised in initial part, forming several loops (Figs 170 , 171 ).

Immature specimens. Abdomen not elongated, heart-shaped, with two oval scuta on dorsum, close to each other, not covering whole dorsum of abdomen (Fig. 165 ).

Remarks.

The first description of the female is given here. Simon described only the male of P. chlorophthalmus , although the vial with a type specimen contains also an undescribed female and a few immature specimens. This material is however in a very poor condition.

Length of the apical part of embolus varies. It is very long in South African specimen, extending beyond the retrolateral edge of apical part of cymbium (Figs 161 , 162 ), and short in specimen from Congo D. R. (Figs 163 , 164 ).

Distribution.

Known from Congo and South Africa (Fig. 197 ).

Figures

Figures 129 - 135. First leg of male 129 Pachyballus castaneus 130 Peplometus biscutellatus 131, 132 P. chlorophthalmus 133 P. congoensis 134 P. oyo 135 P. nimba 132 retrolateral view, others prolateral view.

Figures 154 - 159. Peplometus chlorophthalmus, male 154 habitus, dorsal view 155 habitus, ventral view 156 habitus, lateral view 157 first leg, dorsal view 158 first leg, prolateral view 159 first leg, retrolateral view (specimen from Congo).

Figures 160 - 165. Peplometus chlorophthalmus 160 cheliceral dentition 161, 163 palpal organ, ventral view 162, 164 palpal organ, lateral view 165 immature specimen (160 - 162 holotype 163, 164 specimen from Congo).

Figures 166 - 171. Peplometus chlorophthalmus, female 166 habitus, dorsal view 167 habitus, ventral view 168, 169 epigyne 170 internal structure of epigyne, ventral view 171 internal structure of epigyne, dorsal view (171 specimen from Natal, other specimens from Congo).

Figures 193 - 198. Distribution maps of Pachyballus and Peplometus species. 193 circle - Pachyballus caelestis, square - P. castaneus, triangle - P. variegatus 194 P. flavipes 195 circle - P. miniscutulus, square - P. mombasensis, triangle - P. ornatus 196 P. transversus 197 circle - Peplometus biscutellatus, square - P. chlorophthalmus 198 circle - P. nimba, square - P. oyo, triangle - P. congoensis.