Toxoniella waruii Oketch & Li, 2021

Oketch, Dancun A., Kioko, Esther N. & Li, Shuqiang, 2021, Three new species of the genus Toxoniella (Araneae, Liocranidae) from Mount Kenya National Park, Kenya, African Invertebrates 62 (1), pp. 273-286 : 273

Toxoniella waruii Oketch & Li sp. nov. Figs 4A-D , 5A, B , 6A-C

Material examined.

Holotype Kenya • ♂; Nyeri County, Naro Moru Town, Mount Kenya National Park, Naro Moru Gate; 00.1742°S, 37.1162°E; 2465 m; 26 Jul. 2017; Zhao Q. & Kioko G. leg. Paratypes Kenya • 2 ♂, 3 ♀; same data as holotype.

Diagnosis.

Males of Toxoniella waruii sp. nov. resemble T. taitensis and T. rogoae by having a ridge-like RTA but can be distinguished from T. taitensis by an apically pointed, posterior tegular extension well-separated from the anterior tegular extension and a bent embolus with a membranous sclerite and from T. rogoae by having a flat, distally pointed median apophysis (Fig. 6A-C ; Warui and Jocqué 2002: fig. 10). Females of T. waruii sp. nov. resemble T. taitensis by the fairly elongate epigyne with a wide groove but can be distinguished by a postero-laterally directed pair of anterior spermathecae, cul de sacs do not reach the anterior epigynal margin, and ‘bursae’ absent (Fig. 5A, B ; Warui and Jocqué 2002: figs 7, 8).

Description.

Male. Total length 7.20. Carapace 3.40 long, 2.52 wide, brownish orange, narrow at pars cephalica. Setae sparse, grey laterally with grey radiations from fovea. Cephalic area lacks pattern. Clypeus short, chelicerae, endites, and labium colored as carapace. Eye diameters and interdistances: AME 0.16, ALE 0.13, PME 0.09 and PLE: 0.11, AME-AME: 0.04, AME-ALE: 0.03, PME-PME: 0.07, PME-PLE: 0.07, MOQ: AW: 0.13, PW: 0.18, Length: 0.16. Sternum longer than wide, heart shaped, colored as carapace, with strongly pointed post-coxal triangles. Abdomen with dense, grey setae, reddish brown near carapace. Venter pale yellow with two pairs of intermittent lines from epiandrum towards spinnerets. Leg measurements: I 6.57 (1.76, 0.82, 1.58, 1.24, 1.17), II 5.08 (1.30, 0.79, 1.20, 0.90, 0.89), III 4.96 (1.30, 0.60, 0.91, 1.13, 1.02), IV 7.59 (1.80, 0.95, 1.64, 1.86, 1.34). Anterior leg pairs have long curved setae, three on tarsus are longer. Tenent setae in 5-6 pairs. Leg spination I P-T v1-2-2 Mt v2-2-2; II: P-T v0-1-2 Mt v2-2; III: F P-T pl2, d2, rl2, v2-2-1 Mt 8; IV: P v1 T pl2, d1, rl2, v2-2-2. Palp (Fig. 6A-C ). RTA a curved ridge, wrench shaped posteriorly (Fig. 6C ). Embolus bent, with a membranous, looping sclerite, anterior and posterior tegular extensions distinct. Median apophysis flat and distally pointed (Fig. 6B ).

Female. Similar to male in coloration except darker and larger. Total length 7.20. Carapace 3.40 long, 2.20 wide. Eye diameters and interdistances: AME 0.17, ALE 0.13, PME 0.10 and PLE: 0.11, AME-AME: 0.04, AME-ALE: 0.03, PME-PME: 0.07, PME-PLE: 0.07, MOQ: AW: 0.13, PW: 0.18, Length: 0.16. Leg measurements: I 6.61 (1.78, 0.82, 1.58, 1.23, 1.20), II 5.06 (1.30, 0.80, 1.20, 0.90, 0.86), III 4.97 (1.29, 0.60, 0.93, 1.14, 1.01), IV 7.63 (1.80, 0.98, 1.64, 1.87, 1.34). Tenent setae pairs and leg spination as in males. Abdomen grey, wider than in males. Epigyne (Fig. 5A, B ). Ventrally sclerotized, brown and dark in some areas. Outline of spermathecae in dorsal view is visible through epigynal plate. Anterior epigynal margin smoothly curves downwards (Fig. 5A ). Two pairs of spermathecae, posterior pair larger than anterior pair which are slightly postero-laterally directed. Epigynal groove longer than wide. Cul de sacs about anterior margin of the epigyne.

Etymology.

The species name is dedicated to Dr Charles Warui, a Kenyan ecologist who established and described the genus and two species; noun (name) in genitive case.

Distribution.

Known only from the type locality.

Figures

Figure 4. T. waruii sp. nov., habitus, male holotype (A, B) and female paratype (C, D) A, C dorsal B, D ventral. Scale bars: 1 mm.

Figure 5. Toxoniella waruii sp. nov., epigyne, female paratype A ventral B dorsal. Abbreviations: CDS cul de sac, EG epigynal groove, FD fertilization duct, SP spermatheca. Scale bars: 0.25 mm.

Figure 6. Toxoniella waruii sp. nov., left palp, male holotype A prolateral B ventral C retrolateral. Abbreviations: ATE anterior tegular extension, E embolus, MA median apophysis, PTE posterior tegular extension, RTA retrolateral tibial apophysis. Scale bar: 0.25 mm.