Pholcus chiangmaiensis Yao & Li

Dong, Tingting, Zheng, Guo, Yao, Zhiyuan & Li, Shuqiang, 2016, Fifteen new species of the spider genus Pholcus (Araneae: Pholcidae) from Southeast Asia, Zootaxa 4136 (2), pp. 201-246 : 230

Pholcus chiangmaiensis Yao & Li sp. nov.

Figs 21–22

Type material. Holotype: male, PL 36 Cave (19°21.027′N, 99°01.698′E, elevation 474 m), Chiangmai, Thailand, 29 June 2014, S. Li leg. Paratypes: 1 male and 2 females, same data as holotype.

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

Diagnosis. This species resembles P. n am ou Huber, 2011 (see Huber 2011: 298, figs 1378–1379, 1409–1410, 1471–1475) in having similar male chelicerae ( Fig. 22 D), uncus ( Fig. 22 C), and female external genitalia ( Fig. 22 A) but can be distinguished by the absence of dorsal apophyses subdistally on the procursus ( Figs 21 C–D), by the presence of a large angular branch proximally and a small angular branch subdistally on the appendix (arrows in Fig. 22 C), and by the nearly rounded pore plates of the vulva ( Fig. 22 B).

Description. Male (holotype): Total length 4.61 (4.87 with clypeus), carapace 1.33 long, 1.19 wide, opisthosoma 3.28 long, 1.17 wide. Leg I: 48.11 (11.67 + 0.62 + 11.86 + 22.12 + 1.84), leg II: 31.22 (8.53 + 0.64 + 7.82 +13.14 + 1.09), leg III: 18.43 (5.45 + 0.53 + 4.55 + 7.05 + 0.85), leg IV: 25.81 (7.50 + 0.55 + 6.41 + 10.26 + 1.09); tibia I L/d: 95. Distance PME-PME 0.38; diameter PME 0.11; distance PME-ALE 0.03; distance AME- AME 0.05; diameter AME 0.05. Sternum wider than long (0.90/0.63). Habitus as in Figs 22 E–F. Carapace yellowish, with nearly triangular brown marks; ocular area brown; sternum yellowish, with brown marks. Legs yellowish, patellae, distal parts of femora and tibiae, and proximal parts of metatarsi dark brown, darker rings absent. Opisthosoma pale grey, with brown and whitish marks. Ocular area elevated; each eye triad on top of a short, laterally directed eye-stalk (as in P. hinsonensis sp. nov., cf. Fig. 31 C). Thoracic furrow absent. Chelicerae as in Fig. 22 D, with a pair of proximo-lateral apophyses, a pair of black distal apophyses with three teeth each. Pedipalps as in Figs 21 A–B; trochanter with a long ventral apophysis, and an angular branch subproximally; femur with a dorsal apophysis proximally; procursus long, weakly sclerotized distally; uncus large, with a scaly edge; appendix with a large angular branch proximally and a small angular branch subdistally; embolus weakly sclerotized. Retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia I at 6.6%; legs with short vertical setae on tibiae, metatarsi and tarsi; without spines and curved setae; tarsus I with approximately 15 distinct pseudosegments.

Female: Similar to male, habitus as in Figs 22 G–H. Total length 4.97 (5.12 with clypeus), carapace 1.41 long, 1.13 wide, opisthosoma 3.56 long, 1.70 wide; tibia I: 9.29; tibia I L/d: 63. Distance PME-PME 0.25; diameter PME 0.11; distance PME-ALE 0.04; distance AME-AME 0.03; diameter AME 0.05. Sternum wider than long (0.96/ 0.70). Carapace with V-pattern posteriorly. Ocular area yellowish, without eye-stalks. External genitalia ( Fig. 22 A) with a small knob. Vulva ( Fig. 22 B) with a sclerotized anterior arch and two nearly rounded pore plates.

Distribution. Thailand (Chiangmai, type locality; Fig. 32 ).

Natural history. The species was found in the entrance zone of the cave.

Figures

FIGURE 21. Pholcus chiangmaiensis sp. nov., holotype male. A – B. Pedipalp (A. Prolateral view, arrow points at dorsal apophysis; B. Retrolateral view, left arrow points at branch of trochanter ventral apophysis, right arrow points at dorsal apophysis); C – D. Distal part of procursus (C. Prolateral view; D. Retrolateral view). a = appendix, b = bulb, e = embolus, pr = procursus, u = uncus. Scale bars: 0.20 (A – B), 0.05 (C – D).

FIGURE 22. Pholcus chiangmaiensis sp. nov., holotype male (C – F) and paratype female (A – B, G – H). A. External genitalia, ventral view; B. Vulva, dorsal view; C. Bulbal apophyses, prolateral view, arrows point at large angular branch proximally and small angular branch subdistally on appendix respectively; D. Chelicerae, frontal view; E – H. Habitus (E, G. Dorsal view; F, H. Ventral view). a = appendix, da = distal apophysis, e = embolus, pa = proximo-lateral apophysis, pp = pore plate, u = uncus. Scale bars: 0.10 (A – D), 0.50 (E – H).

FIGURE 31. Male and female ocular area, frontal view. A – B. Pholcus tharnlodensis sp. nov., holotype male (A) and paratype female (B). C – D. P. hinsonensis sp. nov., holotype male (C) and paratype female (D). E – F. P. zhuchuandiani sp. nov., holotype male (E) and paratype female (F). Scale bars: 0.10 (A – F).

FIGURE 32. Distribution records of new Pholcus species from Southeast Asia. ® Pholcus anaiensis sp. nov.; P. ballarini sp. nov.; P. cenranaensis sp. nov.; P. chiangmaiensis sp. nov.; P. gou sp. nov.; © P. hinsonensis sp. nov.; P. kaebyaiensis sp. nov.; P. kottawagamaensis sp. nov.; P. krachensis sp. nov.; P. musensis sp. nov.; © P. songkhonensis sp. nov.; ® P. taptaoensis sp. nov.; © P. tharnlodensis sp. nov.; ® P. w a n sp. nov.; ® P. zhuchuandiani sp. nov.