Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq, 2025

Dhiya’ulhaq, Naufal Urfi, Buchori, Damayanti, Hidayat, Purnama, Scheu, Stefan & Drescher, Jochen, 2025, Two new species and three new records of the cobweb spider Platnickina (Araneae, Theridiidae) from Sumatra, Evolutionary Systematics 9 (2), pp. 203-220 : 203-220

Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq sp. nov.

Figs 9 , 10 , 11 , 12

Type material.

Holotype. INDONESIA - Jambi Province • ♀; Batang Hari, Hutan Harapan / Harapan Rainforest ; 02°10'42.4"S, 103°19'58.2"E; elev. 54 m; 3 Aug. 2013; J. Drescher leg.; canopy fogging in rainforest; GOET 2013_HF 3.1_AraTrid 188 N_001 (to be transferred to MZB) . Paratypes. INDONESIA - Jambi Province • 1 ♀; Batang Hari, Hutan Harapan / Harapan Rainforest ; 02°09'48.9"S, 103°20'04.4"E; elev. 73 m; 6 Jul. 2013; J. Drescher leg.; canopy fogging in rainforest; GOET 2013_HF 2.3_AraTrid 188 N_001 (to be transferred to ZMH) . • 1 ♂; Batang Hari, Bajubang, Pompa Air ; 01°49'33.3"S, 103°17'38.1"E; elev. 51 m; 14 May 2013; J. Drescher leg.; canopy fogging in jungle rubber plantation; GOET 2013_HJ 2.1_AraTrid 188 N_001 (to be transferred to MZB) .

Diagnosis.

This species belongs to the sterninotata - group based on the membranous retrolateral margin of the embolic base and large copulatory openings on the atrium. Among this group, males of P. harapan Dhiya’ulhaq , sp. nov. are most similar to P. adamsoni but can be distinguished by the spatulate conductor with rounded tip and notched TTA (Figs 10 , 12 A, B ) (vs conductor acute with claw-shaped tip and rhomboid TTA in P. adamsoni ) (Figs 1 C – E , 3 A, B ). Females are most similar to P. adamsoni but can be distinguished by the looser copulatory ducts, barely touching itself, with initial part of copulatory ducts arc-shaped (Figs 11 C, D , 12 C, D ) (vs copulatory ducts tightly packed, always touching itself along its length, with its initial part rectangular in P. adamsoni ) (Figs 2 C, D , 3 C, D ).

Description.

Male ( paratype 2013_HJ 2.1_AraTrid 188 N_001 ; Figs 9 , 10 , 12 A – C ). Total length 1.61. Prosoma length 0.75; width 0.59. Opisthosoma length 0.86; width 0.84. Diameter of eyes: AME 0.10; ALE 0.05; PLE 0.07; PME 0.08. Interdistances between eyes: AME – AME 0.06; AME – ALE 0.02; ALE – ALE 0.24; PME – PME 0.05; PME – PLE 0.03; ALE – PLE 0.01; AME – PME 0.07; PLE – PLE 0.27. Leg measurements: leg I –; leg II 3.73 (1.14, 0.21, 1.17, 0.85, 0.36); leg III 2.30 (0.72, 0.17, 0.52, 0.58, 0.31); leg IV 2.42 (0.66, 0.20, 0.60, 0.62, 0.34).

Prosoma pear-shaped, yellow (Fig. 9 A ). Eyes ringed in red; AME larger than the other eyes; AER strongly recurved; PER straight (Fig. 9 A ). Chelicerae yellow (Fig. 9 B ). Maxillae basally yellow, distally brown (Fig. 9 B ). Labium fused with sternum, light-brown (Fig. 9 B ). Sternum triangular, yellow (Fig. 9 B ). Opisthosoma round, inconspicuously tuberculate, pinkish-yellow; dorsally with three pairs of faint black spots as well as numerous smaller black and white (guanine) ones; laterally with two pairs of large black spots (Fig. 9 A, B ). Legs yellow, with faint black ventral spots (Fig. 9 A ). Spinnerets yellow (Fig. 9 B ).

Palp (Figs 10 , 12 A – C ): Tibia yellow. Cymbium oval, yellow. Conductor membranous, spatulate with rounded tip. TTA curved with notched tip. Embolus membranous, curved and wide, covering most of the bulb’s ventral surface, with a distinctly dark outer margin, and bearing a ventrally protruding tip.

Female ( holotype 2013_HF 3.1_AraTrid 188 N_001 ; Figs 11 , 12 D, E ). Total length 1.92. Prosoma length 0.71; width 0.62. Opisthosoma length 1.21; width 1.16. Diameter of eyes: AME 0.09; ALE 0.05; PLE 0.06; PME 0.07. Interdistances between eyes: AME – AME 0.08; AME – ALE 0.02; ALE – ALE 0.23; PME – PME 0.07; PME – PLE 0.03; ALE – PLE 0.00; AME – PME 0.06; PLE – PLE 0.26. Leg measurements: leg I 4.60 (1.50, 0.20, 1.45, 1.07, 0.38); leg II 3.51 (1.10, 0.15, 1.10, 0.83, 0.33); leg III 2.17 (0.76, 0.14, 0.43, 0.55, 0.29); leg IV 2.36 (0.72, 0.17, 0.61, 0.57, 0.29). Habitus as in males, except for the small white (guanine) spots and paired black spots on the opisthosoma which are more distinct (Fig. 11 A ).

Epigynum (11 C, D, 12 D, E): Atrium large, oval. Copulatory openings semicircular. Copulatory ducts roughly S-shaped with the distal part inflated and darkened. Spermathecae oval. Fertilization ducts S-shaped.

Etymology.

The specific epithet refers to the type locality (Hutan Harapan, or Harapan Rainforest). It is also an Indonesian word meaning “ hope ”, reflecting the authors’ aspiration for the advancement of spider taxonomy in Indonesia. Noun in apposition.

Distribution.

Indonesia ( Sumatra: Jambi) (Fig. 15 ).

Figures

Figure 1. Platnickina adamsoni (Berland, 1934), male (2013 _ HO 4.3 _ AraTrid 020 N _ 001). A, B. Habitus. A. Dorsal view; B. Ventral view; C – E. Left palp; C. Prolateral view; D. Ventral view; E. Retrolateral view. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.1 mm (C – E).

Figure 2. Platnickina adamsoni (Berland, 1934), female (2013 _ BF 4.1 _ AraTrid 020 N _ 001). A, B. Habitus; A. Dorsal view; B. Ventral view; C, D. Epigynum, cleared; C. Ventral view; D. Dorsal view. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.1 mm (C, D).

Figure 3. Platnickina adamsoni (Berland, 1934). A, B. Male (2013 _ HO 4.3 _ AraTrid 020 N _ 001), left palp; A. Prolateral view; B. Ventral view; C, D. Female (2013 _ BF 4.1 _ AraTrid 020 N _ 001), epigynum; C. Ventral view; D. Dorsal view. Abbreviations: c = conductor; cd = copulatory duct; co = copulatory opening; e = embolus; fd = fertilization duct; tta = theridiid tegular apophysis; s = spermatheca. Scale bars: 0.1 mm.

Figure 9. Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq, sp. nov., male paratype (2013 _ HJ 2.1 _ AraTrid 188 N _ 001), habitus. A. Dorsal view; B. Ventral view. Scale bars: 0.5 mm.

Figure 10. Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq, sp. nov., male paratype (2013 _ HJ 2.1 _ AraTrid 188 N _ 001), expanded right palpal bulb, mirrored. A. Ventral view; B. Prolateral view; C. Retrolateral view. Scale bars: 0.1 mm.

Figure 11. Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq, sp. nov., female holotype (2013 _ HF 3.1 _ AraTrid 188 N _ 001). A, B. Habitus; A. Dorsal view; B. Ventral view; C, D. Epigynum, cleared; C. Ventral view; D. Dorsal view. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.1 mm (C, D).

Figure 12. Platnickina harapan Dhiya’ulhaq, sp. nov. A – C. Male paratype (2013 _ HJ 2.1 _ AraTrid 188 N _ 001), right palpal bulb, mirrored; A. Prolateral view; B. Ventral view; C. Theridiid tegular apophysis; D, E. Female holotype (2013 _ HF 3.1 _ AraTrid 188 N _ 001), epigynum; D. Ventral view; E. Dorsal view. Abbreviations: c = conductor; cd = copulatory duct; co = copulatory opening; e = embolus; fd = fertilization duct; s = spermatheca. Scale bars: 0.1 mm.

Figure 15. Distribution of five species of Platnickina Koçak & Kemal, 2008 in Jambi Province, Sumatra, Indonesia. Spiders presented in this study were collected by canopy fogging in 32 permanent research plots of the EFForTS project (Drescher et al. 2016). Green areas on the globe belong to Indonesia, and Jambi Province in Sumatra, respectively.