Pellenes (Pelmutus) geniculatus ( Simon, 1868 )

Wesołowska, Wanda & Haddad, Charles R., 2014, An overview of the jumping spiders of Lesotho (Araneae: Salticidae), with descriptions of six new species, African Invertebrates 55 (2), pp. 229-229 : 255-256

? Pellenes (Pelmutus) geniculatus ( Simon, 1868)

Figs 71 , 87–92

Attus geniculatus Simon, 1868: 49 .

Pellenes geniculatus: Simon 1876: 97 ; Logunov et al. 1999: 126, figs 5, 131–153; Metzner 1999: 128, fig. 94; Wesołowska & Russell-Smith 2000: 79, figs 210–213; Wesołowska & van Harten 2007: 239, figs 139–144; Wesołowska & Tomasiewicz 2008: 37; Wesołowska & van Harten 2010: 43, pls 13–16, figs 44–51; Haddad & Wesołowska 2011: 95, figs 108, 109, 123–126.

Salticus simoni Pickard-Cambridge, 1872: 329 .

Pellenes simoni: ProszyŃski 2003: 119 : figs 463–468, 487, 488, 492–494, 498–500.

Wesołowska and Van Harten (2007) described both sexes. General appearance of male shown in Fig. 71 ; genitalic morphology in Figs 87–92 .

Material examined: Maseru district: 1♀ Bushman’s Pass, Near Ha Ralitseko , 29°26'S 27°52'E, 2435 m, under rocks, montane grassland, 9.iii.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3097) ; 1♀ Mohale Dam, Islands , 29°25'S 28°06'E, 2060 m, 4.iii.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3098) ; 1♀ Same locality, 15.xii.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3099). Quthing district : 1♀ Ha Lazaro , 30°18'S 28°08'E, 2355 m, under rocks on hillside, 12.xi.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3100) ; 1♂ 1♀ Near Ha Liphapang village, 30°27'S 28°00'E, 1660 m, under rocks near Sebapela River , 15.xi.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3101) ; 2♂ 2♀ Near Ha Thlaku village, 30°10'S 28°14'E, 2100 m, under rocks near Qhoali River , 14.xi.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3102). Thaba-Tseka district : 1♀ Mokhoabong Pass , 29°31'S 28°20'E, 2880 m, under rocks, 9.iii.2003 ( NCA 2013 /3103) .

Distribution: A species widely distributed in the Palaearctic Region and Afrotropical Region, having been recorded from Yemen, Tanzania, Namibia and South Africa. Widespread in southern and central Lesotho ( Fig. 93 ).

Remarks: The determination of these specimens as P. geniculatus is based on the occurrence of the species in southern and eastern Africa, including the adjacent Grassland Biome of South Africa ( Haddad & Wesołowska 2011). However, the division of the embolus is not identical to that of Palaearctic specimens (Logunov pers. comm.), and a molecular study of different populations of the species may be necessary to clarify their conspecificity and biogeographical relationships.

Figures

Figs 69–73. Digital microscope photographs of the dorsolateral (69) and dorsal (70–73) habitus of jumping spiders from Lesotho: (69, 70) Massagris mohale sp. n., ♂ (69) and ♀ (70); (71) Pellenes geniculatus, ♀; (72) Thyenula armata, ♀; (73) Thyenula sp., ♀.

Figs 87–92. Pellenes geniculatus, ♂ (87–90) and ♀ (91, 92): (87) palpal organ, ventral view; (88) same, retrolateral view; (89) same, dorsal view; (90) detail of embolus; (91) epigyne, ventral view; (92) internal structure of epigyne.

Fig. 93. Distribution of Salticidae from Lesotho.