Pholcus difengensis Yao & Li

Dong, Tingting, Zheng, Guo, Yao, Zhiyuan & Li, Shuqiang, 2016, Thirteen new species of the spider genus Pholcus Walckenaer, 1805 (Araneae: Pholcidae) from China, Zootaxa 4170 (1), pp. 1-40 : 16-19

Pholcus difengensis Yao & Li sp. nov.

Figs 11–12

Type material. Holotype: male, Difeng Scenic Spot (30°43′N, 109°27′E), Xinglong Town, Fengjie County, Chongqing, China, 23 October 2014, Y. Tong leg.

Etymology. The specific name refers to the type locality; adjective.

Diagnosis. This species resembles P. taibaiensis Wang & Zhu, 1992 (see Huber 2011b: 451, figs 2097–2099, 2124–2125, 2178–2183, 2185, 2189 and Yao & Li 2012: 34, figs 169–170) with similar male chelicerae ( Fig. 12 B) and bulbal apophyses ( Fig. 12 A) but can be distinguished by the strongly curved apophysis on male pedipalpal trochanter ( Fig. 11 B), by the absence of prolatero-dorsal spines on the procursus ( Fig. 11 C) and by the presence of a large sclerotized retrolateral apophysis distally on the procursus (arrow in Fig. 11 C).

Description. Male (holotype): Total length 4.33 (4.52 with clypeus), carapace 1.36 long, 1.56 wide, opisthosoma 2.97 long, 1.13 wide. Leg I: 44.12 (10.58 + 0.61 + 11.05 + 19.42 + 2.64), leg II: 28.92 (7.72 + 0.76 + 7.16 + 11.63 + 1.65), leg III: 19.30 (5.65 + 0.61 + 4.66 + 7.28 + 1.10), leg IV: 26.34 (7.66 + 0.61 + 6.44 + 10.13 + 1.50); tibia I L/d: 76. Distance PME-PME 0.32; diameter PME 0.11; distance PME-ALE 0.05; distance AME- AME 0.08; diameter AME 0.07. Sternum wider than long (0.98/0.81). Habitus as in Figs 12 C–E. Carapace whitish, with brown radiating marks and brown bands marginally; ocular area whitish, with brown marks; sternum brown, with whitish marks medially. Legs yellowish, patellae, and proximal parts of tibiae and metatarsi yellow, femora (subdistally) and tibiae (subdistally) with slightly darker rings. Opisthosoma whitish, with small spots dorsally and laterally. Ocular area elevated, without eye stalks (as in P. gonggarensis sp. nov., cf. Fig. 27 C). Thoracic furrow absent. Chelicerae as in Fig. 12 B, with a pair of proximo-lateral apophyses, a pair of black distal apophyses, and a pair of frontal apophyses. Pedipalps as in Figs 11 A–B; trochanter with a ventral apophysis; femur with a distinct ventral ridge; tibia with a projection prolaterally; procursus simple proximally but complex distally, with a sclerotized retrolateral apophysis distally (arrow in Fig. 11 C); uncus with a scaly edge; appendix curved, with a branch medially; embolus weakly sclerotized, with some nearly transparent projections distally. Retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia I at 5%; legs with short vertical setae on tibiae, metatarsi and tarsi; without spines and curved setae; tarsus I with 23 distinct pseudosegments.

Female: Unknown.

Distribution. China (Chongqing, type locality; Fig. 28 ).

Natural History. The species was found on the rock walls.

Figures

FIGURE 11. Pholcus difengensis sp. nov., holotype male. A – B. Pedipalp (A. Prolateral view; B. Retrolateral view); C – D. Distal part of procursus (C. Prolateral view, arrow points at sclerotized retrolateral apophysis distally; D. Dorsal view, flipped photo of right procursus). a = appendix, b = bulb, e = embolus, pr = procursus, u = uncus. Scale bars: 0.15 (A – B), 0.05 (C – D).

FIGURE 12. Pholcus difengensis sp. nov., holotype male. A. Bulbal apophyses, prolateral view; B. Chelicerae, frontal view; C – E. Habitus (C. Dorsal view; D. Ventral view; E. Lateral view). a = appendix, da = distal apophysis, e = embolus, fa = frontal apophysis, pa = proximo-lateral apophysis, u = uncus. Scale bars: 0.05 (A – B), 0.50 (C – E).

FIGURE 27. Male and female ocular area, frontal view. A – B. Pholcus yanjinensis sp. nov., holotype male (A) and paratype female (B). C – D. P. gonggarensis sp. nov., holotype male (C) and paratype female (D). E – F. P. zhongdongensis sp. nov., holotype male (E) and paratype female (F). Scale bars: 0.10 (A – F).

FIGURE 28. Distribution records of new Pholcus species from China. 1. Pholcus yanjinensis sp. nov. from P. bidentatus species group (pink); 2. P. jingyangensis sp. nov., 3. P. langensis sp. nov. and 4. P. longus sp. nov. from P. crypticolens species group (light blue); 5. P. huoxiaerensis sp. nov. from P. ponticus species group (green); 6. P. difengensis sp. nov., 7. P. gonggarensis sp. nov., 8. P. hamaensis sp. nov., 9. P. lingguanensis sp. nov., 10. P. qingyunensis sp. nov., 11. P. tangyuensis sp. nov.; 12. P. tianmuensis sp. nov. and 13. P. zhongdongensis sp. nov. from P. yichengicus species group (red).