Plexippus devorans (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872 )

Prószyński, Jerzy, 2017, Remarks on the genus Plexippus C. L. Koch, 1846 (Araneae: Salticidae), Ecologica Montenegrina 13, pp. 39-69 : 56-57

Plexippus devorans (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872)

Figures 4C [?], 5G

Salticus devorans O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1872 a: 327 .

Menemerus devorans Prószyński, 1984: 85 .

Hasarius devorans Prószyński (1971: 412) (name in catalogue of collections).

Plexippus devorans Prószyński, 2002: 142 , f. 585, 591.

Plexippus devorans Prószyński, 2002: 142-543 , f. 579-580, 584, 589-590 = Plexippus gershomi sp. n.

Material and documentation studied: Syntype female - " Attus devorans Cambr. ""41", "jar 1739" 4 [original label of the species described as Salticus devorans = Plexippus devorans ]. O. Pickard-Cambridg coll. - Mus. Oxford. [Syntypes listed from NH Museum London as Hasarius devorans by Prószyński (1971: 412) were not be examined]. Unlabeled male found in O. Pickard-Cambridge collection, Oxford Musem, in a jar with Palestine specimens – could possibly belong to series of P. devorans .

Documentation studied. Summary of world's literature provided by "Monograph of Salticidae ( Araneae ) of the World 1995-2016. Part I & 2" by Prószyński (2016 a, b) and current literature.

Remarks. Species described on several specimens - "Adults and immature examples of both sexes [of Salticus devorans ] were found on walls, rocky banks and among stones on the plains of the Jordan. An adult male was also met with at Rasheiya [XIXth century station between Banias and Damascus, on the spur of Mt. Hermon, in present day in Lebanon]" - which suggests that the species may be more common in typical environments in Israel and widely distributed in the Levant. Palp shown in Fig. 4C belongs to a specimen found unlabeled[?] in a jar with Palestine collection may, by elimination of other possibilities, MIGHT BE a stray male of " Attus devorans " because unique, more anterior position of prolateral swelling of embolar basis and its shorter distance from embolus itself, which is broader than in other species. Pickard-Cambridge lists from Palestine males of only that species of Plexippus . While this hypothesis cannot be taken as proof of placement of the specimen, the puzzle it presents may be solved only by comparison with syntypes kept in NH Museum in London. Perhaps mentioning it in this description may stimulate identification of remaining syntypes.

Conclusions. Lack of knowledge of internal structure of epigyne in syntype specimen drawn by Prószyński (1984: 85), together with lack of taxonomic revision of syntype specimens of this species kept in NH

4 "Jar 1739" contains also another female of obviously Plexippus sp. with label No. "36", mislabeled " Menemerus indistinctus" (that name is used for a male specimen in the original paper by O. Pickard-Cambridge 1872: 342), epigyne of this specimen is shown (with obvious misinterpretation in its median central part) in Prószyński 1984: 85.

Museum of London, makes uncertain all subsequent identification of that species. Anterior position of the epigynal pocket ( Fig. 5G) excludes all species with central pocket, narrowness of epigynal furrow excludes broad furrowed forms (like P. similis ). It resembles drawings f. 11- 12 in Logunov (2010) claimed to represent holotype of P. clemens (by the way O. Pickard -Cambridge 1872 uses both names " devorans " and " clemens " in combinations with " Salticus ", changed later by Simon 1876 for " Hasarius " and " Euophrys " respectively, however, on original labels both names are used in combination with " Attus " - changes of mind in such matters are frequently encountered in old collections) kept in the same jar. Problem could be disentangled by redescription and good diagnostic drawings of syntypes of Plexippus devorans (= " Hasarius" devorans ) kept in Natural History Museum in London ( Prószyński 1971: 412), which may possibly cause necessity of renaming other species reported from the Near East.

Specimens of Plexippus devorans from Ein Gedi, described by Prószyński (2003: 142-143, f. 579-580, 584, 589-590) are described now as Plexippus gershomi sp. n. ( Figs 4B , 5 H-H1, 7B) below.

Figures

Figure 4a. Diagnostic characters of species of Plexippus. A - Plexippus paykulli (Audouin, 1826) (palp 1/3 larger than remaining species), B - P. gershomi sp. n., C - P. sp. [devorans?? - unlabeled specimen in O. Pickard-Cambridge collection, from a jar with specimens from Palestine], D - P. bhutani Zabka, 1990, D1 - P. minor Wesolowska & van Harten, 2010, E- P. petersi (Karsch, 1878), F - P. tectonicus Prószyński, 2003, G - Plexippus yinae Peng X., Li S., 2003 = P. tectonicus [?], H - Plexippus strandi Spassky, 1939 - from Turkmenistan, K - P. strandi Spassky, 1939, K1 - P. dushanbinus (Andreeva, 1969), L - P. setipes-1 Karsch, 1879, L1 - "P. setipes-2" Peng & Li, 2003, [another palp, hypothetically matching holotype of P. setipes - see Figs 9R-S], M - P. setipes.