Nops blandus (Bryant, 1942)

Figures 9G‒I; 10A‒G

Caponina blanda Bryant, 1942: 328, fig.17. Male holotype from Christiansted (17°44′37″N, 64°42′54″W), St. Croix, U. S. Virgin Island, H. A. Beatty (MCZ 20539; examined).

Nops blandus: Chickering, 1967: 4, fig. 1 (all specimens except male from Haiti MCZ 128296). Sánchez– Ruiz, 2005: 26, fig. 3 (all specimens except those from Dominican Republic IBSP 166393, 166394 and MNHNSD 0 9.1445 herein included in Nops hispaniola Sánchez –Ruiz, Brescovit & Alayón). Wunderlich, 1988: 66, fig. 80. Sánchez–Ruiz et al., 2015: 44, figs 1–6, 25–36, 77, 81.

Nops virginicus Sánchez – Ruiz, 2010: 23, figs 1–2. Male holotype from Little Saint James, 13.xi.1966, Island Project Staff, University of Puerto Rico (BSC 656; examined). New Synonymy.

Additional material examined. U. S. VIRGIN ISLANDS: Saint John: Lameshur bay, at Virgin Islands Environmental Resource Station (VIERS) (18°19′18″N, 64°43′22″W) , iii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 3♂ (FSCA). Lameshur bay (18°19′N, 64°43′W) , 23.ii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 1♀ 2 immatures (FSCA). Ditto, 10.iii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 1♂ 1♀ (FSCA). Ditto, 4.v.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 1♀ (FSCA). Little Lameshur bay, iii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 1♀ (FSCA). Saint John (18°19′N, 64°44′W), vii.1966, A.M. Chickering, 2♂ (palp for SEM), 4♀ 12 immatures (MCZ 128295). Ditto, iii.1964, A.M. Chickering, 1♀ 2 immatures (MCZ 1 28243). Ditto, 11.vii.1974, reef bay trail, W.B. Muchmore, 1♀ (AMNH). Coral Bay, near Butler ′s house (18°20′N, 64°42′W), 22.vii.1975, W.B. Muchmore, 1 immature (AMNH). Ditto , 4.v.1984, W.B. Muchmore, 5 immatures (FSCA). Ditto, 9.iii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, litter rocks, 1♂ 1♀ 4 immatures (FSCA). Europa Bay (18°19′N, 64°43′W) , iii.1984, W.B. Muchmore, pitfall trap in woodland, 2♀ 2 immature (FSCA). Ditto, iii‒v.1984, W.B. Muchmore, pitfall trap, 5♂ 1 immature (FSCA). Yawzi Point (18°18′56″N, 64°43′32″W) , iii‒v.1 984, W.B. Muchmore, pitfall trap, 1♂ (FSCA). Saint Thomas: vii.1966, A.M. Chickering, 4 immatures (MCZ 12 8242). ii.1964, A.M. Chickering, 1♀ 2 immatures (MCZ 128244). BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS: Virgin Gorda: 18.viii.1966, A. Chickering, 2♂ (left palp for SEM) 1♀ 3 immature (MCZ 128298).

Diagnosis. Nops blandus resemble similar congener Nops finisfurvus (Fig. 15C‒D) by having a short and weakly curved embolus in males and a wide invagination on receptaculum of female genitalia, but can be distinguished by having a widest embolar base (Fig. 9H, J), and the invagination on receptaculum is only one time the wide of the lobes (Fig. 10G), in N. finisfurvus is three or four times widest (Fig. 15G).

Description. Male and female described by Sánchez‒Ruiz et al. (2015). Adding the following: Males and females with abdominal pattern as in figure 6I; posterior unpaired claws elongated and dorsally reflexed; and PLS longer than PMS. Females with external genital area with strongly sclerotized anterior plate, strongly sclerotized lep and remarkable ess (Fig. 10F). Internal genitalia with a wide invagination on receptaculum and uterus externus with a wide base (Fig. 10G).

Variation. Males from Virgin Gorda Island have the base of embolus slightly wider. Males and females from Lameshur, Saint John have slight differences in genitalia, size and coloration compared with other Saint John specimens. Male from Little Saint James (BSC 656) have embolus narrower and slight differences in median part compared with males from Saint John.

Distribution. Known only from British and U. S. Virgin Islands (Fig. 8E).