Ischnothyreus chippy n. sp.

Ranasinghe, U. G. S. L. & Benjamin, Suresh P., 2018, Taxonomic descriptions of nine new species of the goblin spider genera Cavisternum, Grymeus, Ischnothyreus, Opopaea, Pelicinus and Silhouettella (Araneae, Oonopidae) from Sri Lanka, Evolutionary Systematics 2 (1), pp. 65-80 : 66

Ischnothyreus chippy n. sp. Figs 6 A–C, 7 A–B

Type material.

Male holotype from Sri Lanka, Uva Province, Badulla District, 189th mile post, Between Koslanda and Beragala, 06°44'48.4"N 80°57'56.3"E, 1370m, 01 January 2012, leg. S. P. Benjamin et al., General Collecting. (IFS_Oon_132) (ZFMK).

Diagnosis.

Males are easily identified by medially constricted abdomen in lateral view (Fig. 6C).

Etymology.

This species name is a noun in apposition named after “Chippy” a brownie and one of the characters in the story “Billy’s Little Boats" by Blyton (1971). Brownies possess queer little pointed feet like goblins.

Description.

Male: Total length 1.66 (Carapace, L: 0.74, W: 0.52. Abdomen, L: 0.92, W; 0.32).

Coloration: carapace brown, sternum and mouthparts orange-brown, abdominal scuta brown, legs yellow-brown, palps pale dark brown. Carapace ovoid (Fig. 6A), with dark brown egg-shaped patches behind eyes, anteriorly narrowed to half its maximum width with rounded posterolateral corners, pars cephalica slightly elevated (Fig. 6A). Clypeus straight in front view, ALE separated from edge of carapace by less than their radius. Six eyes, well developed, ALE largest, circular, PME and PLE circular, posterior eye row procurved in front view. ALE–ALE separated by less than ALE radius, ALE–PLE separated by less than ALE radius, PME–PME touching, PLE–PME touching. Sternum as longer than wide (Fig. 6B). Cheliceral fangs widened. Endites not excavated distally. Abdomen elongated-oval (Fig. 6A), constricted medially in lateral view (Fig. 6C), dorsal scutum sclerotized, covering full length of abdomen with brown and dark-brown color pattern, not fused to epigastric scutum (Fig. 6A). Epigastric scutum sclerotized, ventrally plain, book lung covers large, elliptical, without setae, pedicel tube short, ribbed. Epigastric furrow separates epigastric scutum from postepigastric scutum. Postepigastric scutum long, covering all abdominal length, fused to epigastric scutum. Leg spines present, four spines present on tibia III (Leg I, II missing). Genitalia: Palp of small size, strongly sclerotized. Cymbium ovoid, completely fused with bulb without visible seam, bulb oval, with ventral protuberance (vpr) and tip with multiple, complex processes (Figs 7A, B).

Female: Unknown.

Distribution.

Known only from the type locality (Fig. 21).