Neon Simon, 1876

Richardson, Barry J., 2013, New unidentate jumping spider genera (Araneae: Salticidae) from Australia, Zootaxa 3716 (3), pp. 460-474 : 468

Neon Simon, 1876

Type species: Salticus reticulatus (Blackwall, 1835) .

Diagnosis. As in Logunov (1998). The genus can be distinguished from other Australian genera of tiny unidentate salticids by the presence of a large diverticulum forming the posterior part of the spermatheca and separated from it by a lateral groove when viewed externally (fig. 33).

Remarks. Logunov (1998) redefined the genus and comments on the two presently recognised sub-genera, Neon and Dicroneon Lohmander 1945. Neon is distinguished by the presence of a finely speculated lobe at the embolic base. This is not found in Dicroneon, though single spicules representing an undeveloped or reduced lobe are present (Logunov 1998). The Australian species described here are clearly not members of the subgenus Neon as they lack the speculated lobe and should be presently placed in the sub-genus Dicroneon. In the material available at least two different groups based on morphology are present. The first, including many species from eastern Australia and represented here by N. taylori n. sp., is most similar in morphology to N. sumatranus Logunov 1998 from Indonesia and N. kovblyuki Logunov 2004 from the Crimea and elsewhere. The second, represented by N. australis and undescribed species from South Australia and Western Australia, has palp morphology and fringing on L1 very similar to that seen in N. nojimai Ikeda 1995 from Japan. In the absence of female specimens of N. nojimai or N. australis , they have been left in Neon for the present, though they may well belong in a new genus.

The molecular phylogeny of the Salticidae developed by Maddison and co-workers places Neon in the Astioida and most closely related to the Australian based Astiae radiation. It is possible as a consequence, that Neon is an originally Australian genus that has spread to other regions. However the only species of this genus sequenced (Maddison and Hedin 2003; Bodner and Maddison 2012), N. nelli , belongs within the subgenus Neon , unlike all the presently known Australian species that are more similar to members of the subgenus Dicroneon from the oriental region.

The genus is common and widespread in litter throughout Australia, from the highlands of Tasmania through the hot, dry inland to the wet tropics and includes many undescribed species.