Tayshaneta sprousei, Ledford, Joel, Paquin, Pierre, Cokendolpher, James, Campbell, Josh & Griswold, Charles, 2012

Ledford, Joel, Paquin, Pierre, Cokendolpher, James, Campbell, Josh & Griswold, Charles, 2012, Systematics, conservation and morphology of the spider genus Tayshaneta (Araneae, Leptonetidae) in Central Texas Caves, ZooKeys 167, pp. 1-102 : 35-36

Tayshaneta sprousei sp. n. Figs 27 A–C48A–F 59

Type data.

Male holotype from Constant Sorrow Cave, Camp Bullis, Bexar County, Texas, 6-March-2001, G. Veni, 29.63N, 98.58W, (AMNH).

Etymology.

This species is named in honor of Peter Sprouse, fellow caver, biologist and collector of several Tayshaneta species in Texas caves.

Other material examined.

USA: Texas: Bexar County: Breached Dam Cave, 4-October-1995, J. Reddell, M. Reyes, 1 juv., (TMM);Breached Dam Cave, 1-November-2000, J. Reddell, M. Reyes, 1 ♂, (TMM).

Diagnosis.

Tayshaneta sprousei may be separated from all Tayshaneta species by having the following combination of characters: male palpal tarsus undivided, tapering apically (Fig. 48C); retrolateral tibial spine elongate, 0.5 × length of palpal tarsus; embolus oval, smooth along margins (E, Fig. 48D); ventral sclerite short, less than the width of the embolus (Fig. 48B, D–F).

Description.

Male (holotype). Body length 1.1, carapace 0.47 long, 0.40 wide, length 1.18 × width. Carapace pale yellow, sparsely setose; eyes surrounded by faint dark markings (Figs 27 A–C). Legs elongate and thin, femur I 1.19 × carapace length, covered in fine setae and with few scattered spines. Palpal tarsus entire, tapering apically (TS, Fig. 48C); retrolateral tibial spine straight, sculptured throughout, length 0.49 × tarsus length. Bulb suboval, length 1.52 × width; embolus oval, smooth along margins (E, Fig. 48D), length 2.0 × width; ventral sclerite short, less than embolus width (VS, Figs 48B, D–F). Abdomen pale yellow, without pattern, 0.63 long, 0.50 wide, covered in fine setae.

Variation(n = 2). Total length 1.10-1.12; carapace length 1.18-1.36 × carapace width; length femur I 1.19-1.2 × carapace width.

Distribution.

Known from two caves in Bexar County, Texas (Fig. 59).