Rhomphaea, L. KOCH, 1872

Agnarsson, Ingi, 2004, Morphological phylogeny of cobweb spiders and their relatives (Araneae, Araneoidea, Theridiidae), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 141 (4), pp. 447-626 : 479-480

RHOMPHAEA L. KOCH, 1872

Rhomphaea L. Koch, 1872 , type Rhomphaea cometes L. Koch, 1872 by monotypy, not examined.

Rhomphaea was removed from synonymy of Argyrodes by Yoshida (2001b: 185–187) contra Levi & Levi (1962: 27), see also Arnedo et al. (2004). All species attributed to the ‘ Rhomphaea ’ group of Exline & Levi (1962) and Zhu (1998), or originally described as Rhomphaea are explicitly transferred to Rhomphaea :

R. aculeata Thorell, 1898 , Rhomphaea affinis Lessert, 1936 , R. altissima Mello-Leitão, 1941 , R. angulipalpis Thorell, 1877 , R. brasiliensis Mello- Leitão, 1920, R. cometes L. Koch, 1872 , R. ceraosus (Zhu & Song, 1991) comb. nov., R. cona ( González & Carmen, 1996) comb. nov., R. fictilium (Hentz, 1850) , R. hyrcana (Logunov & Marusik, 1990) , R. irrorata Thorell, 1898 , R. labiata (Zhu & Song, 1991), R. lactifera Simon, 1909 , R. metaltissima Soares & Camargo, 1948 , R. nasica (Simon, 1873) , R. oris ( González & Carmen, 1996) comb. nov., R. ornatissima Dyal, 1935 , R. palmarensis ( González & Carmen, 1996) comb. nov., R. paradoxa (Taczanowski, 1873) comb. nov., R. pignalitoensis ( González & Carmen, 1996) comb. nov., R. procera (O. P.-Cambridge, 1898), R. projiciens O. P.-Cambridge, 1896, R. rostrata (Simon, 1873) , R. sagana (Dönitz & Strand, 1906) , R. sinica (Zhu & Song, 1991) comb. nov., R. sjostedti Tullgren, 1910 , R. tanikawai Yoshida, 2001 , R. urquharti Bryant, 1933 , R. velhaensis ( González & Carmen, 1996) comb. nov.

Diagnosis: Rhomphaea here differs (based on R. metaltissima ) from other argyrodines by the following putative synapomorphies: tibia elongate, but not scoop-shaped (15, Fig. 64A ), epiandrous gland spigots absent (168, Fig. 64F ), egg sac rhomboidshaped (231), embolus tip elongate and strongly ridged basally ( Fig. 64B, C ), ocular projection elongate ( Figs 30C , 94D ), abdomen boomerang-shaped ( Fig. 94D ), posterior tip of abdomen with modified sturdy setae ( Fig. 94D ), and possibly unique preycapture strategy (see Whitehouse, 1987b). At least elongate ocular projection (but see below) and boomerang-shaped abdomen appear highly consistent in Rhomphaea (see e.g. Exline & Levi, 1962; Zhu, 1998; but see below). Furthermore, to the best of my knowledge, all Rhomphaea egg sacs hitherto described are rhomboid (e.g. Exline & Levi, 1962; Chikuni, 1989). The details of the palpal organ are also characteristic. Elongate tibia, elongate embolus tip, and modified sturdy abdominal setae were confirmed in other Rhomphaea examined in detail: R. fictillum and R. projiciens . Embolic ridges and epiandrous gland spigots cannot be accurately assessed without SEM. Uniquely in R. fictillum , and an undescribed species from Madagascar (pers. observ.), the ocular projection is lacking. Given that otherwise these are typical Rhomphaea , this presumably represents secondary loss, possibly defining a subsidiary clade within Rhomphaea .

Argyrodinae furthermore contains Spheropistha Yaginuma, 1957 , type by original designation Spheropistha melanosoma Yaginuma, 1957 . Other species: S. miyashitai ( Tanikawa, 1998) , S. nigroris (Yoshida, Tso & Severinghaus, 2000) , S. orbita ( Zhu, 1998) .

Figures

Figure 30. Argyrodinae male prosoma modifications. A, Argyrodes elevatus. B, Faiditus cf. chickeringi. C, Rhomphaea metaltissima. D, Neospintharus trigonum. Scale bars: 100 mm.

Figure 64. Rhomphaea metaltissima. A–C, male palp. A, ventral with tibia. B, submesial, apical part. C, ectal. D, abdominal SPR (horizontal arrows) and proprioreceptors (vertical arrows) around pedicel. E, stridulatory ridges on prosoma. F, genital furrow, epiandrous gland spigots absent (168-1). G, epigynum. Scale bars: A–D, 100 Mm. E–G, 50 Mm.

Figure 94. A, Ariamnes, male habitus. B, Argyrodes, male habitus. C, Faiditus, male habitus. D, Rhomphaea, male habitus. E, Neospintharus, male habitus. F, Stemmops sp., female abdomen. G, Anelosimus eximius, female abdomen. H, Theridion pictum, female abdomen. I, Ameridion petrum, female abdomen. J, Anelosimus sp. 1, habitus. K, Anelosimus sp. 1, abdomen ventral.