Ganthela Xu & Kuntner

Xu, Xin, Liu, Fengxiang, Chen, Jian, Ono, Hirotsugu, Li, Daiqin & Kuntner, Matjaz, 2015, A genus-level taxonomic review of primitively segmented spiders (Mesothelae, Liphistiidae), ZooKeys 488, pp. 121-151 : 126-128

Taxon classification Animalia Araneae Liphistiidae

Genus Ganthela Xu & Kuntner gen. n. Figures 10-14

Liphistius : Wang 1989, P. 30, description of Liphistius cipingensis (= Ganthela cipingensis ).

Songthela : Ono 2000, P. 150, transferred Liphistius cipingensis to Songthela cipingensis (= Ganthela cipingensis ).

Heptathela : Platnick 1993, P. 77, transferred Liphistius cipingensis to Heptathela cipingensis (= Ganthela cipengensis ).

Type species.

Ganthela yundingensis sp. n.

Etymology.

The genera of heptathelines contain in their name the word ‘thela’ referring to spinnerets as the Greek word thele means nipple-like protuberance ( Ono 2000). We continue this tradition, but name the genus to start with Gan-, which refers to Jiangxi Province.

Diagnosis.

Males of Ganthela differs from all other Heptathelinae genera by a smooth conductor with a distal spiniform apex (Figures 10-11), a flat opening embolus and scale-like contrategulum (Figures 10-11), females can be identified by a single pair of similar receptacular clusters (Figures 13-14).

Description.

Total length (excluding chelicerae) = 8-15 mm (N = 35); male palpal conductor smooth, wide, leaf-shaped, with a spiniform apex (Figures 10-11); spinose paracymbium relative short (Figures 10, 12); embolus with a flat opening (Figures 10-11); contrategulum scale-like with a smooth margin (Figures 10-11); female genitalia with paired receptacular clusters of similar size, situated at the anterior margin of the bursa copulatrix with tubular stems (Figures 13-14).

Species composition.

Ganthela cipingensis (Wang, 1989), comb. n. (7♀), male is unknown, Ganthela yundingensis Xu, sp. n. (1♂1♀), one undescribed species from Jiangxi Province, China (11♀), and four undescribed species from Fujian Province, China (1♀, 1♂11♀, 1♀, and 3♀, respectively).

Distribution.

China (Fujian, Jiangxi).

Remarks.

Wang (1989) placed Ganthela cipingensis in Liphistius based on the presence of eight spinnerets. Our collections from the type locality contain specimens with seven spinnerets. The number of spinnerets thus varies intraspecifically.