Episinus theridioides Simon, 1873

Knoflach, Barbara, Rollard, Christine & Thaler, Konrad, 2009, Notes on Mediterranean Theridiidae (Araneae) – II, ZooKeys 16 (16), pp. 227-264 : 237-238

Episinus theridioides Simon, 1873

Figs 27-31

Plocamis pyrenaea Simon, 1914: 246 , 291, female, type locality: Pyrénées-Atlantiques ( Bosmans and de Castro 2002).

Material examined. France: Pyrénées-Atlantiques, La Rhune, near St-Jean-de-Luz , 2 ♀ 1 juvenile ( MHNP AR 2182 ; type material of P. pyrenaea, Simon 1914: 291 ). Corsica, Haute Asco, 1400-1440 m, 42°23,589’ N, 08°55,349’ E, under stones from scree at forest line, 2 ♀ ( CTh), 12.9.2001, leg. K. Thaler and B. Knoflach [Th-417 Co01/15] .

Description, identification. Knoflach (1993), Agnarsson et al. (2007), for further citations see Platnick (2008).

Synonymy. The synonymisation of E. pyrenaeus ( Simon, 1914) with E. theridioides by Bosmans and de Castro (2002) is supported by the present material from the Pyrenees and from Corsica, though only females have been compared. General appearance ( Fig. 27 ), shape of epigynum and overall course of copulatory ducts ( Figs 28-29 ) are not or barely different from E. theridioides ( Figs 30-31 ).

Distribution. Episinus theridioides occurs discontinuously in the Mediterranean ( Knoflach and Thaler 2000) and is known only from a few localities in the French and Spanish Pyrenees, Cantabria, Corsica and Sardinia; for a distribution map see Bosmans and de Castro (2002). Unlike members of the E. truncatus -group it appears to be an exclusively epigeic species.

Figures

Figures 21-27. Episinus maculipes Cavanna from Sardinia (21, 23, 24), E. algiricus Lucas from Sardinia (22, 25, 26) and E. theridioides Simon from Corsica (27). Male (21-23, 25), female (24, 26, 27).

Figures 28-31. Episinus theridioides Simon from France, La Rhune (28-29; E. pyrenaeus AR 2182) and Corsica (30-31). Epigynum/vulva, ventral (28, 30), dorsal view (29, 31). All figures drawn at same scale. Scale line: 0.20 mm.