Guhua Zhao & Li

Song, Yang, Zhao, Huifeng, Luo, Yufa, Kioko, Grace M., Kioko, Esther N. & Li, Shuqiang, 2017, The first record of Telemidae from Kenya, with the description of two new species (Arachnida, Araneae), ZooKeys 725, pp. 1-15 : 3

Genus Guhua Zhao & Li gen. n.

Type species.

Guhua kakamegaensis sp. n. from Kakamega County, Kenya.

Etymology.

The generic name is taken from the Chinese Pinyin ‘gǔhuà’ meaning sclerotization, referring to the sclerotized receptacle of females. The gender is feminine.

Diagnosis.

The new genus can be diagnosed by the following characters: males can be distinguished by an hourglass-shaped lorum (Fig. 1A), extended lateral plates on the anterodorsal surface of the abdomen, two globular apophyses between the lorum and lateral plates (in contrast to a membranous structure in other genera, except Jocquella leopoldi Baert, 1980); the male bulb has no tegular apophysis on the middle-upper part of the bulb (Figs 1 C–D, 2 C–D) (vs. the tegular apophysis or apophyses present in other African genera), no cymbial apophysis on cymbium (Figs 1C, 2A) (vs. a cymbial apophysis in Pinelema ) or belt-shaped glands on legs (vs. plate-shaped glands in Telema ); embolus is nearly cylindrical (Figs 1 C–D, 2 A–B), arising from the anterior surface of the palpal bulb (in most other genera, the embolus is conical, tube-shaped or shaped otherwise with a broad base and rather narrow apex, arising from the apical side of the bulb). Females can be distinguished by the sclerotized and arched receptacle (Fig. 3 C–D), as no sclerotized receptacle have been reported in other genera.

Description.

See species description.

Species composition.

Guhua kakamegaensis sp. n.

Distribution.

Known only from Kenya.

Note.

It is presumed that this new genus was the first record of a sclerotized receptacle in Telemidae . In Cangoderces lewisi Harington, 1951, the receptacle was also described as having a relatively sclerotized tube ( Brignoli 1978). However, that description is considered to be inaccurate, because the endogyne is similar to most telemids’ receptacle and has usually been described as membranous rather than sclerotized.