Myrmarachne lupata, (L. KOCH, 1879)

Tripathi, Rishikesh, Jose, Athira, Nafin, Karunnappilli Shamsudheen, Babu, Nishi & Sudhikumar, Ambalaparambil Vasu, 2017, Revision of eastern Australian ant-mimicking spiders of the genus Myrmarachne (Araneae, Salticidae) reveals a complex of species and forms, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 179 (3), pp. 642-676 : 657-658

publication ID	https://doi.org/10.1111/zoj.12439
DOI	https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14806036
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/C06D1236-FA29-481E-FCA3-614D7B35FA61
treatment provided by	Plazi
scientific name	Myrmarachne lupata
status

Treatment

MYRMARACHNE LUPATA (L. KOCH, 1879) View in CoL

Synemosyna lupata L. Koch, 1879: 1052 ; pl. 93, fig. 1 (D ♂).

Myrmarachne lupata Rainbow (1911): 283 View in CoL . Myrmarachne lupata Clyne (1977): 52 View in CoL ; fig. 14.1 – 3.

Type material

Australia. QLD: 1♂ holotype ( ZMH, 16505) Port Mackay GoogleMaps (21 ° 15 0 S, 149 ° 15 0 E) .

Diagnosis

This species is most similar to Myrmarachne acutidens Yamasaki & Edwards, 2013 , and among Australian species to M. helensmithae sp. nov., M. macaulayi sp. nov., and M. smaragdina . Males can be differentiated by slightly bulbous chelicerae, plentiful dentition, position of tiny apophysis on the fang, and absence of tibial groove below RTA.

Description

Male: Measurements (N = 1): total body length 9.2 mm, carapace length 2.7 mm, carapace width 1.4 mm, chelicera length 3.8 mm, abdomen length 2.6 mm, PTB = 2.3. Colour: overall body colour brown to black; endites, labium, sternum, and palpal segments brown to dark brown; leg segments dark brown, except for Cx I, Mt II, Ta II, Tr IV, pale, Pt I and IV, ventrally pale, and Tr I and II, Ti II, pale with longitudinal dark-brown stripes on sides. Morphology: chelicerae long, protruding, dorsally covered with white hairs ( Fig. 8C View Figure 8 ), anteriorly with six strong teeth, posteriorly with 11 teeth; fangs slightly sinuous, with ventral apophysis, curved tip ( Fig. 8D View Figure 8 ); prosoma elongate ( Fig. 8A View Figure 8 ), cephalic part of carapace convex, higher than thoracic part, separated from thoracic part by a deep constriction ( Fig. 8B View Figure 8 ); Cx I – IV with a process on the inner margin; leg spines: Ti I with three pairs, Mt I and Ti II each with two pairs of ventral spines; abdomen spherical, with a shallow constriction, and with two dorsal scuta ( Fig. 8A, B View Figure 8 ); palpal cymbium oval, with one apical spine; tegulum small and round; embolus coiled 1.5 times, sinusoid, pointing forwards ( Fig. 8E View Figure 8 ); RTA tiny, hooked at the tip, pointing dorsally, flange developed ( Fig. 8F View Figure 8 ).

Female: Not known.

Distribution

Known only from the type locality in QLD ( Fig. 4E View Figure 4 ).

Remarks

The description given by Koch (1879) does not correspond closely to the drawings (for example, the position of the apophysis on the fang). Its black colour suggests that it imitates black Polyrhachis ants. Ecological and behavioural studies incorrectly used this name for species that are most likely M. macleayana ( Jackson, 1982, 1986). Clyne (1977) presents three suspicious drawings of a male, with fig. 14.1 lacking the apophysis on the basal segment of chelicerae, whereas in fig. 14.2 it is present. In fig. 14.3 there is an apophysis on the fang but it is situated far away from its base (similar to an incorrect drawing in Koch, 1879), and the distal tip is strangely curved.