Peplometus biscutellatus (Simon,1887)

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 biscutellatus (Simon,1887) Figures 4 , 130 , 136-142 , 143-145 , 146-149 , 150-153 , 189 , 190 , 197

Homalattus biscutellatus Simon 1887: 263 (♀).

Peplometus biscutellatus Simon 1901: 486; Berland and Millot 1941: 398.

Holotype.

Ivory Coast • ♀; Assinie; 5°08'N, 3°16'W; Alluaud [C.] leg.; MNHN 9072; examined.

Other material examined.

Cameroon • 2♀; Matube, Tiko plantation; 4°04'N, 9°21'E; 24.IV-6.V.1949; B. Malkin leg.; CAS • 1♀; Mabete Victoria [Limbe]; 4°01'N, 9°13'E; 24.V-7.VI.1949; B. Malkin leg.; CAS • 1♀; Reserve Forestiere Nyong, S to Makak; 3°25'N, 12°47'E; 17.II.1950; J. Dahl and J. Birket-Smith leg.; UCZM. Ghana • 2♂; Kakum forest; 5°25'N, 1°19'W; 18.XI.2005; primary forest, R. Jocqué, D. De Bakker and L. Baert leg.; fogging; MRAC 217 897 • 1♀; the same data; 16.XI.2005; MRAC 217 875 • 2♀; the same data; 25.XI.2005; MRAC 217 945 • 7♂ 4♀; the same locality; 15.XI.2005; secondary forest; MRAC 217 865 • 2♂; the same data; 17.XI.2005; MRAC 217 881 • 1♂; the same data; 12.XI.2005; MRAC 217 857. Guinea • 1♀; Dalaba; 10°42'N, 12°15'W; VII.1937; J. Millot leg.; MNHN • 1♂; Nimba Mts, Zougué Valley, near Gbakoré mine camp; 7°34'N, 8°28'W; 5.X.2011; 780 m a.s.l.; young secondary gallery forest, fogging canopy; D. van den Spiegel leg.; MRAC 238 187 • 1♂; same locality, Seringbara road; 8.II.2012; beating; A. Henrard, C. Allard, P. Bimou, M. Sidibé leg.; MRAC 239 050 • 2♂, 1♀; same locality; gallery forest of Zié; 3.X.2011; 1250 m a.s.l.; fogging, canopy forest, understory shrub layer; D. van den Spiegel, A. Hernard leg.; MRAC 238 066. Ivory Coast • 1 imm.; together with the holotype • 1♂; Bouaké, Foro Foro; 7°49'N, 5°01'W; 5-7.VIII.1974; pitfall; G. Couturier leg.; MRAC 216 442 • 1♂; the same data; MRAC 216 380. Nigeria • 1♂; Kabba; 7°50'N, 6°04'E; 18-23.II.1949; B. Malkin leg.; CAS. Senegal • 1♂; Dakar; 8°19'N, 0°13'W; IX.1947; L. Berland leg.; MNHN. Sierra Leone • 2♂ 3♀ 2 imm.; Free Town; 8°30'N, 13°15'W; col. E. Simon, MNHN 19 988. Togo • 1♀ 1 imm.; without precise locality; col. C.F. Roewer (nr 10861); SMF.

Diagnosis.

The male of this species may be distinguished by a flat area on prolateral side of the tibia I (Figs 130 , 140 , 141 ). The female has a cordiform abdomen, while other congeners have oval abdomen; the width/length ratio of abdomen in P. biscutellatus female is 0.8, whereas it is 0.75 in other species.

Redescription.

Male. Measurements. Cephalothorax: length 1.1-1.7, width 1.2-1.8, height 0.5-0.6. Eye field: length 0.7-0.9, anterior width 1.0-1.3, posterior width 1.2-1.6. Abdomen: length 1.9-2.9, width 1.3-2.1.

General appearance as in Figs 136 , 137 . Body flattened, completely covered with strongly sclerotised and pitted integument. Dorsum of body dark brown, clothed in dense short white hairs (lost in some of the studied specimens). Eye field on more than half of carapace length, black rings around eyes, the first row of eyes encircled with white hairs. Long white bristles between anterior eyes. Clypeus extremely low, brown with a few white hairs. Chelicerae with three diminutive teeth on promargin and five retromarginal teeth fused basally (Fig. 139 ). Mouthparts brown. Sternum oval, brown. Abdomen elongated, widest anteriorly and tapering rearward, anterior edge almost straight. Dorsum of abdomen totally covered by very strongly sclerotised and pitted scutum, laterally slightly turned back to venter. Venter with typical scuta; anterior scutum narrow, extending backwards laterally, posterior ventral scutum largest, cordiform. In front of epigastric furrow a thin sclerotised plate with thick posterior margin forms narrow wedge-shaped bar. Numerous bumps on sides ventrally; armour-plate pattern is shown in Fig. 138 . Spinnerets brown, obscured by dorsal scutum. Legs I the biggest, femora enlarged, brownish with darker prolateral side, three short spines on dorsum. Tibia thickened, clearly flattened prolaterally, blackish with pale dorsal streak, ventrally black brash of dense long feather-shaped setae (Figs 130 , 140 ), metatarsi and tarsi short, yellowish, two pairs of ventral spines on metatarsi. Other legs pale yellowish with dark marks at bases of segments, only femora IV brown (or yellow with brown streak on prolateral side). Palps light, their structure as in Fig. 142 . Palpal tibia short with single thin straight apophysis, bulb oval, embolus thin, long, spirally coiled, forming three loops on bulb tip.

Female. Measurements: Cephalothorax: length 1.0-1.4, width 1.2-1.4, 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 2.1-2.3, width 1.7-1.9.

General appearance as in Figs 143-145 . Similar to male, but abdomen wider, heart-shaped. Scarce white hairs on body. Carapace dark brown, black near eyes. Legs I as in males, not so thick, tibia slightly thickened, retrolateral flattening hardly visible. Palps dark, blackish. Epigyne large, rectangular, weakly sclerotised, with small semicircle shallow depression divided by median septum (Figs 146-149 ). In some females horizontal crevices laterally, formed by microsculpture of integument, not part of epigyne (Fig. 146 ). Copulatory ducts very long, spirally coiled behind openings, form several loops distally, spermathecae bean-shaped (Figs 150-153 ).

Immature specimens. Abdomen not elongated, heart-shaped, with two oval dorsal scuta on abdomen, close to each other (Figs 189 , 190 ).

Remarks.

The first description of the male is given here. Simon described P. biscutellatus based on a female from Ivory Coast, however in his samples from Sierra Leone the two sexes were present (labelled by Simon himself). This fact has already been mentioned by Berland and Millot (1941), but they have not described the missing male. Material collected by Simon is in a very poor condition. Numerous specimens have lately been collected by fogging, this species typically inhabits canopy.

Distribution.

West equatorial Africa (Fig. 197 ).

Figures

Figures 1 - 6. Some morphological characters of Pachyballus and Peplometus 1 Pach. flavipes (specimen from Gabon), male, ventral abdominal scuta 2 Pach. ornatus (specimen from Tanzania), female, ventral abdominal scuta 3 Pach. flavipes (specimen from Congo), embolus 4 Pepl. biscutellatus (specimen from Ivory Coast), palpal organ in ventral view 5 Pach. flavipes (specimen from Zimbabwe), epigyne with broken embolus in copulatory opening 6 Pach. castaneus, pitted integument of abdomen.

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 136 - 142. Peplometus biscutellatus, male 136 habitus, dorsal view 137 habitus, lateral view 138 venter of abdomen 139 cheliceral dentition 140 first leg, dorsoprolateral view 141 first leg, dorsal view 142 palpal organ, ventral view (photos - specimen from Ghana, drawings - specimen from Sierra Leone).

Figures 143 - 145. Peplometus biscutellatus, female 143, 144 habitus, dorsal view 145 habitus, ventral view (143 specimen from Cameroon 144, 145 specimen from Ghana).

Figures 146 - 149. Peplometus biscutellatus, female, epigyne (upper row specimens from Sierra Leone, lower row specimens from Ghana).

Figures 150 - 153. Peplometus biscutellatus, female, internal structure of epigyne 150, 151 ventral view 152, 153 dorsal view (150, 151 specimen from Ghana 152 specimen from Cameroon 153 specimen from Sierra Leone).

Figures 189 - 192. Dorsal scuta of abdomen, immature specimens. 189, 190 Peplometus biscutellatus 191, 192 Pachyballus transversus 189, 191 younger instar 190, 192 subadult.

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.