Hortipes hormigricola, BOSSELAERS & JOCQUÉ, 2000

BOSSELAERS, JAN & JOCQUÉ, RUDY, 2000, Hortipes, A Huge Genus Of Tiny Afrotropical Spiders (Araneae, Liocranidae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2000 (256), pp. 4-4 : 4-

Hortipes hormigricola , new species Figures 34a–c , 35a ; Map 5

TYPES: Male holotype: ‘‘small Mt. Koupe´ ,’’ 1250 m, Cameroon (7 February 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC 207.361 ). Paratypes: 26 from litter in gallery forest alongside mountain stream, 1550 m, W slope of Mbam massif, Cameroon (30 March 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC; 16 in AMNH) ; 16 in pitfall trap alongside small mountain stream, 2150 m, Mbam massif, Cameroon (30 March 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 16 near Mann’s spring, 2050 m, Mt. Cameroon, Cameroon N04°08' 30″, E09°07' 01″ (21–25 January 1992; Coddington, Griswold, Larch­ er and Hormiga) ( CAS) ; 3♀ from thick litter layer of dense mountain rain forest, 2250 m, Manengouba massif, Cameroon (25 March 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 1♀ from litter under isolated shrubs in open grassland, 2150 m, Manengouba massif, Cameroon (March 25, 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 1♀ from lowland rain forest near stream, 500 m, Etinde , Cameroon N04°06', E09°09' (2 March 1981; Bosmans and Van Stalle) ( MRAC) ; 1♀ hand captured in strongly degraded mountain rain forest dominated by elephant grass, 1300 m, Mt. Cameroon, Cameroon (March 1981; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC; now in AMNH) .

ETYMOLOGY: The species’ epithet hormigricola is a contraction of the names of the four arachnologists who collected one of the type specimens: G. Hormiga, C. Griswold, J.

2000 BOSSELAERS AND JOCQUÉ: HORTIPES 99

easily recognized by the male palp with indented femoral apophysis in combination with the gutter­shaped RTA and the long MA. For difference with H. depravator see under that species. Females are characterized by the large, conspicuous, heavily sclerotized ID entrances, the very stout first stretch of the ID, which is running in anterior direction, and the small ST1 externally encircled by the ID.

MALE: Measurements. Total length 2.57; carapace 1.08 long, 0.89 wide; length of fe: I 0.81, II 0.89, III 0.68, IV 1.05. Leg spination. Fe: I rv 2; IV plt 1 rlt 1; ti: I, II vsp 6; mt: III plt 1 vt 1 rlt 1; IV plt 1 vt 2 rlt 1. Coloration. Carapace dark yellow, chelicerae and legs yellow. Sternum pale yellow. Abdomen pale pink, no pattern. Palp. Femur with fairly long, retrolateral, indented apophysis. Tibia with large, downward­pointing and procurved, gutter­shaped RTA holding embolus; cymbium with large retrolateral bend with regular series of long setae; tegulum with retrolateral swelling at base of embolus; sperm duct with wide basal part and thin distal part with short, sharp turn; MA with thick base and long, slender distal part, curved in anticlockwise direction, tip twist­ ed; embolus long, whiplike, looped 540° (fig. 34a, b).

FEMALE: Measurements. Total length 3.51; carapace 1.51 long, 1.24 wide; length of fe: I 1.35, II 1.40, III 1.08, IV 1.49. Leg spination. Fe: I rv 3; IV plt 0 rlt 0; ti: I, II vsp 6; mt: III plt 1 vt 1 rlt 1; IV plt 1 vt 2 rlt 1. Coloration. Carapace, chelicerae, and legs yellow. Sternum pale yellow. Abdomen pale yellow, no pattern, covered with short, pointed grey setae. Genitalia. Epigyne a shallow central depression enclosing two large, dark, heavily sclerotized ID entrances, touching each other on symmetry axis (fig. 34c). Vulva: ID entrance large and heavily sclerotized, first stretch of ID very stout and thick walled, associated with cauliflower­like gland, encircled by two ID loops, themselves connected to small ST1 through wide loop completely encircling the latter (fig. 35a).

OTHER MATERIAL EXAMINED: Cameroon: 16, 1♀, Mt. Koupe´ , no further data (1983 ; the edge of the tree fern zone, elev. 1800 m, Mt. Cameroon (March 1981; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; female in pitfall trap near Man’s lake , Manengouba massif, elev. 1900 m (17– 21 February 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC), 16, one juvenile captured in a pitfall trap in a clearing in the mountain rain forest, elev. 1900 m, Mt. Cameroon (March 1981; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 16 hand captured in open mountain rain forest with maccabo fields, elev. 1400 m, Mt. Cameroon (March 1981; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 16 captured in a pitfall trap in well­developed mountain rain forest with tree fern undergrowth, elev. 1500 m, Mt. Cameroon (March 1981; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) ; 2♀, one juvenile hand captured in mountain rain forest, elev. 1200 m, Mapanja , Mt. Cameroon (19 March 1983; R. Bosmans) ( MRAC) .

VARIABILITY: The exact course of the coils and loops of ID is somewhat variable.

DISTRIBUTION: Mt. Cameroon, Mt. Koupe´, the Manengouba and Mbam massifs, Cameroon, elev. 500–2250 m.

Figures

Map 5. Distribution of Hortipes species in Cameroon. Hortipes abucoletus *, H. alderweireldti, H. anansiodatus •, H. architelones Δ, H. bosmansi v, H. calliblepharus ^, H. chrysothemis n, H. depravator, H. fortipes., H. hormigricola V, H. puylaerti D, H. robertus h, and H. sceptrum O.

Fig 35. a. Hortipes hormigricola, new species, vulva, ventral view. b. Hortipes anansiodatus, new species, vulva, ventral view. c. Hortipes exoptans, new species, vulva, ventral view. Scale line: 0.1 mm.

Fig. 34. a–c. Hortipes hormigricola, new species. a, b. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. c. Epigyne. d, e. Hortipes depravator, new species, male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. Scale line: 0.25 mm.