Simonia steineri Yu & Lin, 2023

Zhang, Jianshuang, Yu, Hao & Lin, Yucheng, 2023, Simonia gen. nov., a new spider genus (Araneae, Theridiosomatidae) from Southeast Asia, ZooKeys 1185, pp. 277-294 : 277

Simonia steineri Yu & Lin sp. nov.

Figs 5 , 7

Type material.

Holotype ♀ (IZCAS) and paratype 1♀ (IZCAS), Laos: Hua phan Pro., Guesthouse cave, 20°24.176'N, 104°13.818'E 13.I.2008, H. Steiner leg.; paratype 1♀ (NHMSU), Hua phan Pro., Tham Kuong Tai, 20°27.470'N, 104°09.850'E, 12.I.2014, H. Steiner leg.

Etymology.

The specific name is a patronym after Mr. Helmut Steiner (Hessen, Germany), collector of the type series.

Diagnosis.

The females of S. steineri sp. nov. can be easily distinguished from other congeners by the following characters: 1) dorsum of abdomen uniformly coloured (vs with pattern) (cf. Fig. 5A and Figs 4C , 6A ); 2) spermathecae separated from anterior margin of epigynal plate by more than 1.5 × diameters of spermathecal head (vs nearly touching anterior margin) (cf. Fig. 5E and Figs 4G , 6E ); and 3) spermathecae hammer-shaped, spermathecal heads globular, spermathecal stalks straight (vs spermathecae not hammer-shaped, spermathecal heads bean-shaped, spermathecal stalks slightly curved) (cf. Fig. 5E and Figs 4G , 6E ).

Description.

Female (Fig. 5A, B ): Carapace, uniformly brown except a V-shaped dark brownish band along cervical groove; cervical groove and radial grooves indistinct. AER distinctly recurved, PER almost straight in dorsal view. Sternum deep brown. Mouthparts proximally reddish brown, distally light brown, inner margins white. Legs uniformly yellowish. Abdomen round, marginally clothed with sparse long setae, uniformly yellowish white, without any markings or distinct pattern. Measurements: Total length 2.12. Carapace 1.03 long, 0.86 wide. Clypeus 0.21 high. Sternum 0.55 long, 0.52 wide. Abdomen 1.46 long, 1.37 wide. Length of legs: I 3.12 (0.98, 0.32, 0.93, 0.58, 0.31); II 3.03 (0.92, 0.28, 0.81, 0.69, 0.33); III 2.42 (0.73, 0.27, 0.58, 0.63, 0.21); IV 2.93 (0.89, 0.32, 0.77, 0.64, 0.31).

Epigyne (Fig. 5E-G ). Epigynal plate c. 1.2 × wider than long, anteriorly concaved by c. 140°, copulatory bursae distinctly visible through integument. Scape (Sc) shaped like an acute triangle, relatively large, about 1/4 length of epigynal plate. Spermathecae (Sp) hammer-shaped, with globular-shaped heads (SH) and columnar stalk (SS); anterior surface of spermathecae separated from anterior margin of epigynal plate by more than 1.5 × diameters of spermathecal head; spermathecal stalks straight, extending obliquely, separated by about 3-4 × diameters of stalks. Bursae (CB) subglobular.

Distribution.

Known only from the type locality, Guesthouse cave, Huapan Province, Laos (Fig. 7 ).

Figures

Figure 4. Simonia youyiensis, male habitus (A, B), female habitus (C, D) and epigyne (E-G) A dorsal B ventral C dorsal D ventral E intact, ventral F cleared, ventral (blue dashed line showing the anterior margin of the epigynal plate) G cleared, dorsal (green dashed line showing schematic course of copulatory duct). Abbreviations: CB = copulatory bursa; CD = copulatory duct; FD = fertilization duct; Sc = scape; SH = spermathecal head; SS = spermathecal stalk; Sp = spermatheca; TF = transverse fold of epigynal plate. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A-D); 0.2 mm (E-G).

Figure 5. Holotype female of Simonia steineri sp. nov., habitus (A, B) and epigyne (C-E) A dorsal B ventral C intact, ventral D cleared, ventral (blue dashed line showing the anterior margin of the epigynal plate) E cleared, dorsal (green dashed line showing schematic course of copulatory duct). Abbreviations: CB = copulatory bursa; CD = copulatory duct; FD = fertilization duct; Sc = scape; SH = spermathecal head; SS = spermathecal stalk; Sp = spermatheca; TF = transverse fold of epigynal plate. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.2 mm (C-E).

Figure 6. Holotype female of Simonia sumatra sp. nov., habitus (A, B) and epigyne (C-E) A dorsal B ventral C intact, ventral D cleared, ventral (blue dashed line showing the anterior margin of the epigynal plate) E cleared, dorsal (green dashed line showing schematic course of copulatory duct). Abbreviations: CB = copulatory bursa; CD = copulatory duct; FD = fertilization duct; SB = spermathecal base; Sc = scape; SH = spermathecal head; SS = spermathecal stalk; Sp = spermatheca; TF = transverse fold of epigynal plate. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.2 mm (C-E).

Figure 7. Distribution records of Simonia gen. nov. species.