Micropholcus fauroti ( Simon, 1887 )

Huber, Bernhard A. & Meng, Guanliang, 2024, Old World Micropholcus spiders, with first records of acrocerid parasitoids in Pholcidae (Araneae), ZooKeys 1213, pp. 95-182 : 95-182

Micropholcus fauroti ( Simon, 1887)

Figs 16 , 17 , 18

Notes.

For synonymy, type information, and redescription, see Huber (2011). Numerous further records and an updated distribution map were published in Huber et al. (2017). Since then, new records have been published for Egypt ( Ahmad and Abou-Setta 2017), Sri Lanka ( Huber 2019), Venezuela ( Huber and Villarreal 2020) and India ( Vishnudas and Sudhikumar (2021). The map in Fig. 13 A summarises all the previous records plus the new records below.

New records.

Colombia: La Guajira • 3 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀; Palomino ; 11.2451 ° N, 73.5619 ° W; 10 m a. s. l.; in building; 17 Sep. 2022; B. A. Huber leg.; ZFMK Ar 24653 .

Mexico: Guerrero • 1 ♂, 3 ♀♀; Coyuca de Benitez ; 17.0075 ° N, 100.0893 ° W; 20 m a. s. l.; in building; 3 Oct. 2019; B. A. Huber leg.; ZFMK Ar 24654 . Nuevo León • 1 ♂, 8 ♀♀, 1 juv.; Santiago ; 25.4237 ° N, 100.1463 ° W; 450 m a. s. l.; in building; 14 Oct. 2019; B. A. Huber leg.; ZFMK Ar 24655 • 5 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, in pure ethanol (one male palp and two female abdomens transferred to ZFMK Ar 24655 ); same collection data as for preceding; ZFMK Mex 286 .

United Arab Emirates: Dubai • 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀ (“ Micropholcus cf. fauroti ” in Feulner and Roobas 2016); Dubai, near Emirates Towers ; 25.219 ° N, 55.282 ° E; 5 m a. s. l.; 3 Jun. 2015; G. R. Feulner leg.; ZFMK Ar 24680 .

Oman: Ash Sharqiyah South • 3 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, 2 juvs; Wadi Tiwi ; 22.801 ° N, 59.240 ° E; on banana leaves; 60 m a. s. l.; 22 Mar. 2017; B. A. Huber leg.; ZFMK Ar 24656 • 1 ♂, 2 juvs, in pure ethanol; same collection data as for preceding; ZFMK Om 27 .

Diagnosis.

Males are easily distinguished from known congeners by long and slender dorsal hinged process on procursus (Fig. 17 C ; similar but relatively shorter in some Saudi Arabian species, cf. Figs 24 C , 40 C , etc.); also by unique prolateral process on procursus (arrowed in Fig. 17 A ) and by unique shapes of processes of genital bulb (Fig. 17 D, E ). Females are distinguished by distinct U-shaped internal structure visible through epigynal plate in uncleared specimens (Fig. 18 A ); similar dark internal structures occur in some Saudi Arabian species (e. g., Figs 26 A , 30 A ); also by very large pore plates and large anterior membranous element of internal genitalia (Fig. 18 D ).

Figures

Figure 13. Known distribution of Micropholcus fauroti (Simon) (A) and of Old World Micropholcus in Mindanao (B), on the Arabian Peninsula (C) and in Morocco (D).

Figure 16. Micropholcus fauroti (Simon, 1887); male from Mexico, Nuevo León, Santiago (ZFMK Ar 24655). Left palp in prolateral (A), dorsal (B), and retrolateral (C) views. Abbreviations: b, genital bulb; c, coxa; f, femur; hp, dorsal hinged process; pa, patella; pr, procursus; ta, tarsus; ti, tibia; tr, trochanter. Scale bar: 0.3 mm.

Figure 17. Micropholcus fauroti (Simon, 1887); male from Mexico, Nuevo León, Santiago (ZFMK Ar 24655) A – C left procursus in prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrow in A points at distinctive prolateral process D, E left genital bulb in prolateral and retrolateral views; bold arrows in D point at distinctive processes of unclear homology. Abbreviations: e, embolus; hp, dorsal hinged process; ps, proximal bulbal sclerite. Scale bars: 0.3 mm.

Figure 18. Micropholcus fauroti (Simon, 1887); female from Mexico, Nuevo León, Santiago (ZFMK Ar 24655) A, B abdomen, ventral and lateral views C, D cleared genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. Abbreviations: k, epigynal ‘ knob’; pp, pore plate. Scale bars: 0.5 mm (A, B); 0.2 mm (C, D).

Figure 24. Micropholcus dhahran Huber, sp. nov.; male from Saudi Arabia, ‘ Asir, W of Dhahran Al Janub (ZFMK Ar 24657) A – C left procursus in prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; bold arrow in C points at proximal spine on hinged process D, E left genital bulb in prolateral and retrolateral views; bold arrows in D point at distinctive processes of unclear homology. Abbreviations: e, embolus; hp, dorsal hinged process; mf, membranous prolateral flap; ps, proximal bulbal sclerite; rr, retrolateral ridge; tm, transparent membrane; Scale bars: 0.3 mm.

Figure 26. Micropholcus dhahran Huber, sp. nov.; female from Saudi Arabia, ‘ Asir, W of Dhahran Al Janub (ZFMK Ar 24657) A, B abdomen, ventral and lateral views C, D cleared genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. Scale bars: 0.3 mm.

Figure 30. Micropholcus harajah Huber, sp. nov.; female from Saudi Arabia, ‘ Asir, SE of Harajah (ZFMK Ar 24659) A, B abdomen, ventral and lateral views; arrows in A point at unique epigynal pockets C, D cleared genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. Scale bars: 0.3 mm.

Figure 40. Micropholcus tanomah Huber, sp. nov.; male from Saudi Arabia, ‘ Asir, NW of Tanomah (ZFMK Ar 24663) A – C left procursus in prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views D, E left genital bulb in prolateral and retrolateral views. Abbreviation: hp, dorsal hinged process. Scale bars: 0.3 mm.