Charinus martinicensis Teruel & Coulis, 2017

Miranda, Gustavo Silva de, Giupponi, Alessandro P. L., Prendini, Lorenzo & Scharff, Nikolaj, 2021, Systematic revision of the pantropical whip spider family Charinidae Quintero, 1986 (Arachnida, Amblypygi), European Journal of Taxonomy 772, pp. 1-409 : 31-32

Charinus martinicensis Teruel & Coulis, 2017

Fig. 12 ; Table 1

Charinus martinicensis Teruel & Coulis, 2017: 31–35 , figs 1–4.

Charinus martinicensis – Seiter et al. 2018: 351.

Diagnosis

Based on Teruel & Coulis (2017), this species may be separated from other Caribbean and Central American Charinus by means of the following combination of characters: median eyes reduced; lateral eyes well developed; pedipalp femur with three dorsal spines and three ventral spines; pedipalp patella with three dorsal spines and two ventral spines; pedipalp tarsus with two dorsal spines; tibia of leg I with 23 articles, tarsus I with 37 articles; leg IV basitibia with two or three pseudo-articles.

Charinus martinicensis resembles most Caribbean species of Charinus and shares with C. acosta , C. aguayoi , C. bruneti and C. miskito sp. nov., the presence of median eyes, although also reduced in in C. bruneti and C. martinicensis . Charinus martinicensis differs from these species in the number of articles on the tibia and tarsus of leg I. The basitibia of leg IV consists of two to three pseudo-articles, common to all Caribbean and some South American species.

Etymology

Latin adjective derived from the name of the island on which the species was collected ( Teruel & Coulis 2017).

Type material

Holotype MARTINIQUE • ♀; Sainte-Anne , Morne Manioc; 14°26′00″ N, 60°51′26″ W; 150 m a.s.l.; 27 Jan. 2017; M. Coulis leg.; RTO [not examined].

Paratypes MARTINIQUE • 1 ♀; same collection data as for holotype; RTO [not examined] • 2 ♀♀; same locality as for holotype; 30 Aug. 2016; RTO [not examined] .

Measurements

See Table 1 .

Distribution

Known only from the type locality on the island of Martinique.

Natural history

Specimens were found under limestone rocks in the leaf litter of coastal semideciduous forest.

Remarks

Teruel & Coulis (2017: fig. 2c–d) mention that Charinus martinicensis has a fully developed median eyes, a statement contradicted by their figure. The median eyes and ocular tubercle are clearly reduced and, as mentioned by Teruel & Coulis (2017: 33) are “located inside a deep oval depression of the tegument”, typical of charinids with reduced median eyes. Although only female specimens were studied, Teruel & Coulis (2017) do not provide information regarding the shape of the female gonopod. Similarly, no information is provided about the trichobothria of leg IV.

Figures

Fig. 12. Map plotting known distributions of species of Charinus Simon, 1892 in the Caribbean and Central America.