Merizocera galle Li sp. nov. Figures 7, 8, 52

Type material.

Holotype: male (IZCAS), Rumassala Mountain (6°1.48'N, 80°14.55'E, elevation 51 m), Unawatuna Village, Galle District, Southern Province, Sri Lanka, 12-13 October 2014, S. Kosala leg. Paratype: 1 female (IZCAS), same data as holotype.

Etymology.

The specific name refers to the type locality; noun in apposition.

Diagnosis.

Males can be distinguished from congeners by the distinctly longer (longer than tegular) and bent embolus (Fig. 7B); from M. ratnapura sp. nov. (Fig. 33B), M. phuket sp. nov. (Fig. 27B), and M. hponkanrazi sp. nov. (Fig. 9B) by the absence of conductor (vs. presence of distinct conductor projected from the base of embolus). The females can be distinguished by a pair of horizontally twisted spermathecae (Fig. 8A).

Description.

Male (holotype). Total length 1.00; carapace 0.48 long, 0.42 wide; abdomen 0.51 long, 0.36 wide. Carapace circular, brownish, with dark brown marks laterally and brown median stripe on anterior half (Fig. 8C). Fovea shallow. Thoracic region distinctly elevated medially. Clypeus brownish, with dark brown marks medially. Labium and sternum dark brown. Abdomen slightly elongated, dark grey, with dark marks posteriorly and ventrally. Legs brown; measurements: I 3.73 (1.00, 0.17, 1.13, 0.90, 0.53), II 2.98 (0.79, 0.16, 0.85, 0.72, 0.46), III 2.49 (0.70, 0.13, 0.67, 0.63, 0.36), IV 3.74 (0.98, 0.16, 1.13, 0.96, 0.51). Palp (Fig. 7A-D): femur slender, thrice longer than patella; patella not swollen; tibia similar length as femur; cymbium with distal protrusion, half length of femur, length ratio of dorsal protrusion and cymbium 0.54; bulb pale yellow, pyriform with embolus arising distally, conductor absent; embolus distinctly elongated and bent, 1.5 times longer than the tegular.

Female (paratype). General features and colouration similar to those of male (Fig. 8D, E). Measurements: total length 1.24; carapace 0.53 long, 0.45 wide; abdomen 0.70 long, 0.48 wide. Leg measurements: I 3.62 (0.94, 0.17, 1.08, 0.89, 0.54), II 3.03 (0.78, 0.17, 0.87, 0.73, 0.48), III missing, IV 3.70 (0.95, 0.16, 1.13, 0.92, 0.54). Epigastric area (Fig. 8B): brown, lanceolate patch. Endogyne (Fig. 8A) with pair of horizontally twisted spermathecae, ratio of the width of twisted spermatheca and the interdistance of spermathecae 1:4.

Distribution.

Known only from the type locality (Sri Lanka; Fig. 52).