Chaerilus seiteri Kovařík, 2012

Kovařík, František, 2012, Five new species of Chaerilus Simon, 1877 from China, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, and Vietnam (Scorpiones: Chaerilidae), Euscorpius 149, pp. 1-14 : 5-7

Chaerilus seiteri Kovařík , sp. n.

( Figs. 18–33)

TYPE LOCALITY AND TYPE REPOSITORY. Philippines, Negros Island ; NMWA.

TYPE MATERIAL. Philippines, Negros Island , 1♂ (holotype), NMWA, 1♂ 1♀ (paratypes), FKCP, reared by Michael Seiter in 2011-2012 .

ETYMOLOGY. Named after Michael Seiter, an Austrian arachnologist.

DIAGNOSIS. Total length 23–25 mm. Two pairs of lateral eyes and one pair of median eyes. Movable finger of pedipalp with 7 edges composed of granules. Fingers straight in both sexes. Chela of pedipalp with 8 carinae, patella with 5 carinae, femur with 4 carinae. Patella of pedipalp bears an internal tubercle. Pectinal teeth number 5 in males and 4 in female. Male differs from female in having pedipalp chela much narrower. Chela length/ width ratio in males = 3.2–3.5. Carapace and mesosomal tergites sparsely covered by granules. Sternites smooth, without carinae. Carinae of metasomal segments consist of large, pointed, widely spaced granules. First to fourth metasomal segments with 4 to 6 carinae of which lateral can be incomplete or missing. First metasomal segment with ventral side smooth, devoid of granules. Second to fourth segments may or may not have 2 ventral carinae and lack lateral carinae. Fifth metasomal segment with 7 carinae. Spaces between carinae smooth. Color yellow or reddish to black, spotted including telson.

DESCRIPTION. Total length 23–25 mm. Two pairs of lateral eyes and one pair of median eyes. The male has relatively larger pectens. The chela of pedipalp is narrow. Male differs from female in having pedipalp chela much narrower. Fingers straight in both sexes. Pectinal teeth number 5 in male and 4 in female. For the position and distribution of trichobothria see Figs. 20–26.

COLORATION. The color is yellow or reddish to black, spotted including telson. Younger specimens have lighter ornament. The manus of chela is reddish to brown with black carinae.

MESOSOMA AND CARAPACE. The carapace lacks carinae, is sparsely covered by granules, and its anterior margin is straight to weakly concave. The mesosomal tergites are sparsely granulated, less so in the male than in the female. All sternites are smooth, without carinae. Each sternite bears less than 10 red setae. The marginal lamellae of pectines bear five red setae. Numerous white setae are on teeth of pectines.

METASOMA AND TELSON. The first to fourth metasomal segments bear four to six carinae of which the lateral ones can be incomplete or missing. The first metasomal segment has the ventral side smooth, devoid of granules. The second to fourth segments may or may not have two ventral carinae and lack lateral carinae. The fifth metasomal segment bears seven carinae of which one ventral carina posteriorly branches to form the letter “Y“. All carinae are composed of sparse and denticulate granules. Spaces between carinae are smooth. All segments are sparsely covered by white hairs. The telson is elongate, smooth and sparsely hirsute, mainly in ventral part.

PEDIPALPS. The movable finger has seven edges. The chela bears eight granulated carinae, the carina on the externolateral surface may be incomplete. The patella bears five carinae and the femur bears four or five carinae. All carinae consist of granules and are black. The spaces between carinae are covered by unevenly spaced small granules that can form a reticulate pattern on the dorsal surface of the chela. The patella of pedipalp bears an internal tubercle.

LEGS. The legs are hirsute, without bristlecombs and carinae. The femora are sparsely granulated, and solitary granules may be present also on the patella.

MEASUREMENTS IN MM. Total length of male paratype 24.2; carapace length 3.6, width 3.6; metasoma and telson length 12.2; first metasomal segment length 1.2, width 1.85; second metasomal segment length 1.35, width 1.65 third metasomal segment length 1.4, width 1.55; fourth metasomal segment length 1.6, width 1.45; fifth metasomal segment length 2.95, width 1.4; telson length 3.7; pedipalp femur length 3.4, width 1.15; pedipalp patella length 3.75, width 1.3; chela length 6.95; manus width 2.0; movable finger length 3.45.

Total length of female paratype 23; carapace length 3.4, width 3.8; metasoma and telson length 11.9; first metasomal segment length 1.05, width 1.95; second metasomal segment length 1.3, width 1.55; third metasomal segment length 1.4, width 1.45; fourth metasomal segment length 1.55, width 1.35; fifth metasomal segment length 2.8, width 1.4; telson length 3.8; pedipalp femur length 2.75, width 1.25; pedipalp patella length 3.1, width 1.4; chela length 6.3; manus width 2.28; movable finger length 3.35.

AFFINITIES. The described features distinguish C. seiteri sp. n. from all other species of the genus. They are recounted in the key. Morphologically closest are C. rectimanus , C. sejnai , C. phami and probably C. petrzelkai . The smooth ventral sides of the seventh sternite distinguish C. seiteri sp. n. from C. phami and C. petrzelkai , which have the ventral sides of the first metasomal segment and the seventh sternite granulated. The male of C. rectimanus has longer and narrower chela of pedipalps. The chela length/width ratio in male C. rectimanus is higher than 4, whereas in C. seiteri sp. n. the ratio in the males 3.2 to 3.5 similar as C. sejnai , in which the male chela length/width ratio is 3.2 to 3.6. It appears that C. sejnai is the species most closely related to C. seiteri sp. n. These two species differ in the shape of the metasomal segments; in C. seiteri sp. n. the first to third metasomal segments are wider than long in both sexes, whereas in C. sejnai the third metasomal segment is longer than wide or as long as wide. Another difference can be seen in the color of the telson, which in C. sejnai is yellow without spots and contrasts with coloration of other body parts, whereas in C. seiteri sp. n. it is spotted ( Fig. 32).