Hoplopholcus trakyaensis Demircan & Topçu, 2017

Huber, Bernhard A., 2020, Revision of the spider genus Hoplopholcus Kulczyński (Araneae, Pholcidae), Zootaxa 4726 (1), pp. 1-94 : 81-84

Hoplopholcus trakyaensis Demircan & Topçu, 2017

Figs 410–428

Hoplopholcus trakyaensis Demircan & Topçu, 2017: 83 , figs 1–3 (♂ ♀).

Hoplopholcus longipes ( Spassky, 1934) (misidentification)— Naumova et al. 2016: 434.

Diagnosis. Distinguished from known congeners by shapes of procursus and bulbal processes ( Figs 419–420, 423–426 ): tip of procursus with distinctive distal element (arrow in Fig. 419 ; proximally strongly sclerotized, with weakly sclerotized pointed tip), ventral spine of procursus almost straight and with small proximal process dorsally (similar to H. figulus ), ventral ‘knee’ of procursus barely visible; ventral bulbal sclerite ribbon-shaped (i.e. relatively flat and only slightly widened distally), dorsal membranous process distinct. Females are difficult to distinguish externally from congeners; pair of ventral furrows of uterus externus (arrows in Fig. 427 ) possibly diagnostic (poorly visible in uncleared specimens); median pouch of uterus externus variably visible in uncleared specimens ( Figs 413, 416 ); ventral sclerotized arc with strong median sclerite similar to H. bursa (compare Figs 386 and 427 ); lateral internal pouches connected to ventral arc and strongly developed.

Type material. TURKEY, Tekirdağ: ♂ holotype, NOHUAM (PHO-02/11-60) , Saray District, Ayvacık Village, Küçük Kalaslı cave [~ 41.50°N, 27.95°E; see Notes below], 183 m a.s.l., 22.ix.2014; examined . 30♂ 19♀ paratypes from seven caves in Saray District in Tekirdağ Province and from Vize District in Kırkareli Province (details in Demircan & Topçu 2017), all in NOHUAM , 1♀ from Saklısu cave examined .

Other material examined. TURKEY, Kırkareli: 1♂ 1♀ 3 juvs, NMNHS, Demirköy District, Yildiz dağlari ( Strandzha Mountains ), near Sarpdere , Dupnisa Mağarası (41.841°N, 27.556°E), 350 m a.s.l., 25.vii.2006 (P. Stoev, S. Lazarov, D. Duhalov) .

BULGARIA, Burgas: 1♂ 1♀, NMNHS, Strandzha Mountains, Tsarevo town, Sarpijskata pestera cave [42.0025°N, 27.8440°E], 26.ix.2006 (B. Petrov) .

Redescription. Male (Dupnisa Mağarası, NMNHS). MEASUREMENTS. Total length 4.3, carapace width 1.7. Distance PME-PME 130 µm; diameter PME 140 µm; distance PME-ALE 40 µm; diameter AME 60 µm; distance AME-AME 60 µm. Leg 1: 33.4 (9.0 + 0.7 + 9.2 + 11.9 + 2.6), tibia 2: 6.8, tibia 3: 5.1, tibia 4: 6.2; tibia 1 L/d: 61.

COLOR (in ethanol). Carapace mostly pale ochre-yellow, medially dark brown; clypeus only slightly darkened; sternum black; legs ochre-yellow, with darker rings subdistally on femora and tibiae and in patella area; abdomen pale gray with large black marks dorsally and diffuse pattern covering most of ventral side.

BODY. Habitus as in congeners (cf. fig. 1A in Demircan & Topçu 2017). Ocular area slightly elevated. Deep thoracic pit and indistinct pair of shallow furrows diverging from pit toward posterior margin. Clypeus unmodified. Sternum wider than long (1.10/0.75), unmodified. Abdomen oval, dorso-posteriorly rounded.

CHELICERAE. As in Figs 421–422 , with pair of latero-distal apophyses provided with two modified coneshaped hairs each; fine stridulatory ridges barely visible in dissecting microscope.

PALPS. As in Figs 410–412 ; coxa with low retrolateral hump, trochanter barely protruding ventrally, retrolateral dark line on femur barely visible, distinct prolateral stridulatory pick; procursus ( Figs 419–420 ) with barely visible ventral ‘knee’, with distinctive distal element (arrow in Fig. 419 ; proximally strongly sclerotized, with weakly sclerotized pointed tip), ventral spine almost straight; genital bulb ( Figs 423–426 ) with ribbon-shaped ventral sclerite (i.e. relatively flat and only slightly widened distally), with distinct dorsal membranous process ( Fig. 424 ).

LEGS. Femur 1 with single row of ~18 ventral spines; with curved hairs on tibiae and metatarsi 1 and 2; few vertical hairs; retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 5%; prolateral trichobothrium present on all leg tibiae; tarsi without distinct pseudosegments but with many small platelets.

Male (variation). Tibia 1 in two other males seen: 9.0, 9.8. Mean tibia 1 length in 30 males studied by Demircan & Topçu (2017): 9.0 (but see Notes below).

Female. In general similar to male but without spines on legs. Tibia 1 in three females seen: 8.8, 10.3, 10.3. Mean tibia 1 length in 19 females studied by Demircan & Topçu (2017): 11.0 (but see Notes below).

FEMALE GENITALIA. Epigynum as in Figs 413, 416 , epigynal plate roughly triangular with very shallow median depression; sclerotized internal arcs, median pouch of uterus externus, and pair of lateral pouches visible in uncleared specimens; with pair of light brown weakly bulging areas in front of epigynum; simple, very short but wide posterior plate. Internal genitalia ( Figs 414–415, 417–418 , 427–428 ) with strong median sclerite on ventral sclerotized arc; uterus externus with median pouch and pair of distinctive ventral furrows (arrows in Fig. 427 ); lateral pouches strongly developed, connected anteriorly to ventral arc, almost parallel; pore plates large, oval, converging anteriorly.

Notes. The type locality is misspelled in the original publication (Ayvancık instead of Ayvacık) and the coordi- nates are wrong (27.417°E instead of ~ 27.95°E).

If the measurements in Demircan & Topçu (2017) were correct, this would be one of the very few Pholcidae species with longer female than male legs. In fact, the value for mean male/female tibia 1 length in this species would be 0.82, which is by far the lowest value ever reported (Huber 2011 reported 0.89 for Pholcus fragillimus but with small sample sizes; the lowest value based on more reasonable sample sizes was reported for Smeringopus natalensis in Huber 2012 : 0.94). However, the ratio of male femur1/tibia 1 given in Demircan & Topçu (2017) for 30 male paratypes (10.6/9.0) strongly suggests a measurement error.

Distribution. Known from several caves in the Strandzha Mountains of Turkey and Bulgaria ( Fig. 448 ).

Figures

FIGURE 448. Known distributions of Hoplopholcus trakyaensis and H. bursa. TL = type localities.

FIGURES 410–418. Hoplopholcus trakyaensis Demircan & Topçu, 2017. Left male palp in prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; epigyna, ventral views, and cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. 410–415. Male and female from Turkey, Dupnisa Mağarası (NMNHS). 416–418. Female from Bulgaria, Sarpijskata pestera cave (NMNHS).

FIGURES 419–428. Hoplopholcus trakyaensis Demircan & Topçu, 2017 from Dupnisa Mağarası (NMNHS). 419–420. Left procursus, prolateral and retrolateral views (arrow points at distinctive distal element). 421–422. Male chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. 423–426. Left genital bulb, dorsal, prolateral, ventral, and retrolateral views. 427–428. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views (arrows point at possibly diagnostic ventral furrows of uterus externus). Scale lines: 0.5 mm.

FIGURES 378–387. Hoplopholcus bursa sp. n. from Turkey, Great Oylat Cave (ZFMK Ar 20970–71). 378–379. Left procursus, prolateral and retrolateral views (arrow points at distinctive dorsal process). 380–381. Male chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. 382–385. Left genital bulb, dorsal, prolateral, ventral, and retrolateral views (arrow points at distinctive prolateral process). 386–387. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views (arrow points at distinctive median sclerite of ventral arc). mp, median pouch of uterus externus; lp, lateral pouch of uterus externus. Scale lines: 0.5 mm.