Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935

Huber, Bernhard A., Meng, Guanliang, Valdez-Mondragón, Alejandro, Král, Jiří, Ávila Herrera, Ivalú M. & Carvalho, Leonardo S., 2023, Short-legged daddy-long-leg spiders in North America: the genera Pholcophora and Tolteca (Araneae, Pholcidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 880 (1), pp. 1-89 : 29-31

Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935

Figs 3H–I , 19–24 , 33I–J

Remark

For synonymy, type material, and redescription, see Huber (2000).

Diagnosis

Easily distinguished from known congeners by unique brush of modified hairs on male palpal femur ( Fig. 19A, C ) and by pair of round sacs in female internal genitalia ( Fig. 22B–D ); also by shape of procursus ( Fig. 20C–E ; tip in lateral view with wide transparent flap), by shape of distal bulbal process ( Fig. 20F–H ), and by indistinct plate in front of main epigynal plate ( Fig. 21A, C ).

Material examined (new record)

MEXICO – Hidalgo • 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 3 female abdomens; ~ 2.5 km SW of Jacala ; 20.9948° N, 99.2138° W; 1430 m a.s.l.; 21 Oct. 2019; B.A. Huber and A. Valdez-Mondragón leg.; ZFMK Ar 23952 • 7 ♀♀, 2 juvs, in pure ethanol (three female prosomata used for molecular work, abdomens transferred to ZFMK Ar 23952); same collection data as for preceding; ZFMK Mex341 • 6 ♀♀, 2 juvs (subadult ♂♂); same collection data as for preceding; LATLAX .

Description (amendments; see Huber 2000)

Male

Measurements of male from SW of Jacala, Hidalgo (ZFMK Ar 23952): body length 1.75, carapace width 0.70; tibia 1 length 1.25, metatarsus 1 length 1.30, tibia 2 length 0.95, tibia 4 length 1.25. Distance PME-PME 70 µm; diameter PME 50 µm; distance PME-ALE 25 µm; distance AME-AME 15 µm; diameter AME 30 µm. Diameters of leg femora 0.14–0.16, of leg tibiae 0.08–0.09. Clypeus unmodified, but slightly more protruding than in female; clypeus rim to ALE 0.21. Distances between cheliceral stridulatory ridges proximally 2.0 µm, distally 3.2 µm. Sternum humps very distinct, ~0.08 long. Procursus as in Fig. 20C–E , with distinctive transparent element distally (barely visible in dissecting microscope); genital bulb as in Fig. 20F–H . Leg tibiae with slightly higher number of vertical hairs than in female (proximally on tibiae 1 and 2); prolateral trichobothrium absent on tibia 1. Tibia 1 in previously measured specimens: 0.72 ( Gertsch 1982); 0.96, 0.97, 1.39 ( Huber 2000).

Female

In general, similar to male but sternum without pair of anterior humps, and chelicerae without stridulatory files. Tibia 1 in 11 females from SW of Jacala: 0.90–1.18 (mean 1.03). Epigynum and internal female genitalia as in Figs 21 , 22 , 23C , with pair of receptacles (shape varies slightly with angle of view), without (or with very small?) pore plates.

Distribution

Apparently widely distributed in north-eastern Mexico, ranging into southern Texas ( Fig. 2 ). However, the map in Fig. 2 includes four records that are based exclusively on females, i.e., the identifications should be verified (e.g., by collecting males or by sequencing specimens from these localities).

Natural history

The newly collected specimens were found under rocks on an arid hillside set with low thorn scrub ( Fig. 34B ).

Figures

Fig. 3. Pholcophora Banks, 1896, live specimens. A. P. americana Banks, 1896, male from USA, Colorado, near Golden.B–E. P. mazatlan Huber sp. nov., males and females with egg-sacs from Mexico, Guerrero, N of Mazatlán. F–G. P. papanoa Huber sp. nov., male and female from Mexico, Guerrero, S of Papanoa. H–I. P. texana Gertsch, 1935, male and female with egg-sac from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala. J–K. P. tehuacan Huber sp. nov., male and female with egg-sac from Mexico, Puebla, SE of Tehuacan. L. P. “Mex354”, female with egg-sac from Mexico, Puebla, SE of Tehuacan.

Fig. 19. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, male from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala (ZFMK Ar 23952). Left palp, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrows point at unique brush of modified hairs. Scale bar = 0.3 mm.

Fig. 20. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, male from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala (ZFMK Ar 23952). A–B. Chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. C–E. Left palpal tarsus and procursus, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views. F–H. Left genital bulb, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views. Scale bars = 0.2 mm.

Fig. 21. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, female from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala (ZFMK Ar 23952), epigynum. A. Ventral view. B. Lateral view. Scale bar = 0.3 mm (both at same scale).

Fig. 22. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, females from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala (ZFMK Ar 23952). A–B. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. C–D. Detail of median internal structures in two different specimens (slightly different angles of view). Scale bars: A–B = 0.2 mm; C–D = 0.1 mm.

Fig. 23. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, female from Mexico, Hidalgo, 2.5 km SW of Jacala (ZFMK Mex341). A. Ocular area, dorsal view. B. Lateral face of chelicera, showing absence of stridulatory file. C. Epigynum, ventral (slightly posterior) view. D. ALS. E. PMS and anal hairs (arrows). F. Tip of left palpal tarsus, dorsal view. G. Detail of right palpal tarsus, dorsal view. H. Palpal tarsal organ. Abbreviations: ep = epigynum (main epigynal plate); pep = posterior epigynal plate; to = tarsal organ. Scale bars: A–B = 20 µm; C = 100 µm; D–G = 10 µm; H = 2 µm.

Fig. 24. Pholcophora texana Gertsch, 1935, female from Mexico, Hidalgo, 2.5 km SW of Jacala (ZFMK Mex341). A. Detail of femur 2, retrolateral view. B. Detail of tibia 4, retrolateral view. C. Patella-tibia 1 joint, retrolateral view. D. Metatarsus-tarsus 2 joint, retrolateral view. E. Retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1. F. Detail of tarsus 1, showing pseudosegmentation. G. Tip of tarsus 2, retrolateral view. H. Tip of tarsus 4, prolateral view, showing comb-hair (arrow). Scale bars: A–B, D–H = 10 µm; C = 20 µm.

Fig. 33. Pholcophora internal female genitalia, median sections of main transversal internal sclerite. A–B. P. americana Banks, 1896, females from USA, California, Inyo Nat. Forest (ZFMK G089) and Colorado, near Golden (ZFMK USA16). C–D. P. mazatlan Huber sp. nov., females from Mexico, Guerrero, N of Mazatlán (ZFMK Ar 23943). E–F. P. papanoa Huber sp. nov., females from Mexico, Guerrero, S of Papanoa (ZFMK Ar 23945). G–H. P. “Mex354”, females from Mexico, Puebla, SE of Tehuacan (ZFMK Mex354). I–J. P. texana Gertsch, 1935, females from Mexico, Hidalgo, SW of Jacala (ZFMK Ar 23952). K–L. P. tehuacan Huber sp. nov., females from Mexico, Puebla, SE of Tehuacan (ZFMK Ar 23949). M. Pholcophora? “Car544”, female from Puerto Rico, Isla Mono (USNM ENT 783464). N. Pholcophora? “Cu12-325”, female from Cuba, Santiago de Cuba, Siboney (ZFMK Cu12- 325). Scale bar = 0.1 mm.

Fig. 2. Known distributions of ‘true’ Pholcophora Banks, 1896 (orange marks) and of presumably misplaced Caribbean ‘Pholcophora’ and of Papiamenta Huber, 2000 (red marks). Dominican amber species currently placed in Pholcophora are represented by an “F” in a pink square. Our molecular data suggest that Caribbean ‘Pholcophora’ are more closely related with the genus Papiamenta than with true Pholcophora. Barcoded specimens of Pholcophora americana Banks, 1896 are marked with an “x” and accompanied by the vial code (see Table 1 for details).

Fig. 34. Representative sample of habitats of Pholcophora Banks, 1896 in Mexico. A. Guerrero, 2 km N of Mazatlán (type locality of P. mazatlan Huber sp. nov.). B. Hidalgo, 2.5 km SW of Jacala (P. texana Gertsch, 1935). C. Guerrero, 5 km S of Papanoa (type locality of P. papanoa Huber sp. nov.; with collecting tray). D. Puebla, 35 km SE of Tehuacan (type locality of P. tehuacan Huber sp. nov.).