Piaroa pioi, Villarreal, Osvaldo, De Armas, Luis F. & García, Luis Fernando, 2014

Villarreal, Osvaldo, De Armas, Luis F. & García, Luis Fernando, 2014, A new species of Piaroa (Schizomida: Hubbardiidae) from Venezuela, with taxonomic notes on the genus, Zootaxa 3765 (4), pp. 371-381 : 374-376

Piaroa pioi sp. nov.

Figs. 15–21 , 37 , Table 1

Male belonging to the genus Piaroa: Armas et al., 2009: 366 .

Type material. Male holotype ( MIZA 752), Venezuela, Falcón State, Petit municipality, Sierra de San Luís, Cerro Galicia 11°10’37.19” N, 69°42’19.10” W (1450 m). 11 April 2006 (L. F. de Armas, O. Villarreal M., P. A. Colmenares), under rock, in cloud forest.

Distribution. Only known from the type locality ( Fig. 37 ).

Etymology. This species is named in honor of Pío A. Colmenares García, arachnologist and one of the collectors of the holotype.

Diagnosis. This species differs from P. h o y o s i and P. villarreali by the presence of defined bulb; the lateral border of the posterior lobe of flagellum which is convergent in dorsal view, separates this species from P. virichaj and P. guipongai (lateral border parallel); the presence of two dorsal and fused holes in P. bijagua Armas and Víquez, 2009 distinguishes this species from P. pioi sp. n. The lack of a dorsal process on segment XII of P. pioi sp. n. and a higher length/width relationship allows it to be distinguished from P. youngi Armas and Víquez, 2009 .

Male 4.2 mm in total length; female unknown. Body brown greenish pale, with appendages lighter. Propeltidium with two pairs of dorsal setae; ocular spots present. Metapeltidium entire. Abdominal segments IX– XII attenuate ( Fig. 21 ); XII without dorsal posterior eminence, flagellum elongate ( Figs 15–17 ), 1.2 times longer than wide. Pedipalp ( Fig. 20 ): trochanter with a sharp triangle-shaped frontal process; femur short and robust; patella sub-cylindrical, twice larger than high.

Description, male (holotype). Color: Propeltidium, chelicerae, pedipalps, legs I, distal zone of femora, patella IV and flagellum reddish brown or yellowish brown, rest of body light greenish brown ( Fig. 21 ). Ventrally lighter except pedipalp coxae.

Prosoma: Anterior process of propeltidium with 2 setae (one behind the other), and 2 pairs of medial dorsal setae, anterior setae closest to each other, located posterior to ocular spots, which are elongate and irregular. Mesopeltidium thin, separated from each other by 1.3 times the width of each plate. Metapeltidium entire, with a slight longitudinal suture in posterior half; posterior margin slightly emarginate. Protosternum with 11 + 2 setae and tritosternum with 6 setae.

Opisthosoma: Setae: Tergite I with 2 pairs of anterior microsetae and 1 pair of dorsoposterior setae; tergite II with 3 pairs of microsetae and 2 pairs of dorsoposterior setae; tergites III–VII each with 1 pair of dorsoposterior setae; tergite VIII with 1 pair of dorsoposterior setae and 1 pair of dorsodistal lateral; tergite IX with 2 pairs of dorsodistal setae and 1 pair of laterodistal setae; tergite X without dorsal setae, with 1 pair of laterodistal setae; tergite XI without dorsal setae, with 2 pairs of laterodistal setae; tergite XII with 1 pair of dorsodistal setae, without posterodorsal process. Ventral region: Ventral apodemes oval, slightly sclerotized and darker than sternites. Sternite I–IX with two rows of transverse tiny setae; X with five ventral setae; XI with five and XII with eight.

Flagellum ( Figs 15–17 ) with pedicel long, about 25% of the length of the flagellum. Bulb flattened dorsoventrally, elongated, with two dorsal small depressions, 2.7 times longer than wide, distal portion long, approximately one half the length of the whole bulb. Setae: Dm1 situated on pedicel, Dm3 reduced to microsetae, located in midway between Dm1 and Dl1, Vm2 anterior to Dm1; Vm1 between Vm2 and Vm4 but closer to Vm2; Vl1 slightly anterior to Dl1, which is located in the medial line of flagellum, adjacent to posterior border of dorsal depressions, where the attenuation begins; Dm4 located distally in subterminal position, slightly anterior to Vl2; Dl 3 in extreme distal position.

Chelicera ( Figs 18–19 ). Fixed finger with five accessory teeth. Movable finger with small lamella, serrula having 17 teeth, ending in a guard tooth. Number of setae in group: 1=3 with spicules on the base; 2=4; 3=4; 4=3; 5=8; 6=1.

Pedipalp ( Fig. 20 ) apparently not modified or sexually dimorphic. Trochanter with a small mesal spur, with sharp triangle-shaped frontal process, with a row of 7 ventral setae. Femur short and robust, dorsally curved, and distal border straight in lateral view, with a very small ventral projection, patella sub-cylindrical, 2 times longer than high; basitarsus sub-cylindrical, 3 times longer than high. Tarsus short (0.4 times the basitarsus length), with 2 small ventrodistal spurs.

Legs. With pattern typical of Hubbardiinae , anterodorsal margin of femur IV curved at about a 90° angle.

Natural history. The holotype and only known specimen was collected under a stone in a cloud forest (1450 m a.s.l.), sympatrically with Rowlandius arduus Armas, Villarreal and Colmenares, 2009 , and another new hubbardiid species belonging to an undetermined genus (Armas et al., 2009).

Characters Male holotype Propeltidium: L/W 1.30/0.75 Abdomen: L 3.12 Flagellum: L/W/H 0.88/0.26/0.16 Pedipalp:

Trochanter, L/H 0.55/0.34 Femur, L/H 0.59/0.34 Patella, L/H 0.65/0.23 Tibia, L/H 0.52/0.18 Tarsus/Claw, L 0.26/0.08 Leg: I

Trochanter, L 0.29 Femur, L 1.43 Patella, L 1.79 Tibia, L 1.30 Basitarsus, L 0.39 Telotarsus, L 1.48 Leg: IV

Femur L/H 1.22/0.55 Patella, L 0.57 Tibia, L 0.83

Figures

FIGURE 21. Piaroa pioi sp. nov. Male holotype: Habitus laterodorsal view.

FIGURE 37. Geographical distribution of the genera Piaroa.

FIGURES 15 – 20. Piaroa pioi sp. nov, flagellum, dorsal (15), ventral (16) and lateral (17); 18 – 19, movable finger of the chelicera showing serrula. 20, pedipalp, lateral aspect; Scale: 1 – 3 = 0.25 mm; 4 = 0.55 mm.