Miturginae Simon, 1886

Raven, Robert J., Hebron, Wendy & Williams, Kylie, 2023, Revisions of Australian ground-hunting spiders VI: five new stripe-less miturgid genera and 48 new species (Miturgidae: Miturginae), Zootaxa 5358 (1), pp. 1-117 : 9-10

Miturginae Simon, 1886

Diagnosis. Differ from Zorinae (except Hestimodema ) and Diaprograptinae in the absence of true claw tufts, and from Hestimodema in the PLE not forming a third row, the AER being recurved in anterior view, and lacking strong paired spines ventrally on tibiae and metatarsi I and II, especially in the female. Eight eyes in two rows, PER slightly recurved or procurved. Two claws with setae around claws ( Figs 2b , 81e ) but no true tufts. Male palp with or without retrolateral cymbial groove, RTA with dissimilar dorsal and ventral processes joined by unsclerotised area. Tegulum entire.

Included genera: Miturga Thorell, 1870 , Miturgopelma gen. nov., Knotodo gen. nov., Miturgiella gen. nov., Xistera gen. nov., and Xeromiturga gen. nov.

Synonymies and transfers

Zoroides Berland, 1924 (type species Zoroides dalmasi Berland, 1924 ; holotype in MNHP (examined) is presently in the Miturgidae . Silva-Dávila (2003), reporting on an unpublished cladogram, found the monotypic Zoroides grouped with Liocranum L. Koch, 1866 . Ramírez (2014: 342) suggested Zoroides was “probably a phrurolithid”; however, although that was not reported by the World Spider Catalog (2023); Ramírez (2014) did transfer the monotypic Dorymetaecus Rainbow, 1920 to the Phrurolithidae Banks, 1892 . Zoroides dalmasi is well represented in the New Caledonian collections of the Queensland Museum. Zoroides is a large congener of Dorymetaecus spinipes Rainbow, 1920 , the type species, which is in the Phrurolithidae , (type in SAM and with recently collected material in AMS [males, AM KS, 79163, 76174, 79153; females, KS32724, 75819, 76077], examined). Both Dorymetaecus spinipes and Zoroides dalmasi are strongly similar to the Asian Otacilia Banks,1892 , but lack the putative synapomorphy of the Phrurolithidae , the process on the ventral palpal femur of males. Zoroides is thus considered a junior synonym of Dorymetaecus syn. nov. and maintained in the Phrurolithidae .

Miturga whistleri Simon, 1909: 171 (female holotype from south-western Western Australia in MNHP 16195, examined), is herein considered a junior synonym of Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch, 1873) syn. nov., with which it shares the shape of the epigyne.

Miturga splendens Hickman, 1930 (female holotype from Tasmania in QVMAG:13:7326, examined) is also considered a junior synonym of Mituliodon tarantulinus syn. nov., with which it shares the shape of the epigyne.

Figures

FIGURE 2. Miturginae. a, Knotodo gracilis (Hickman, 1950), female, habitus, image Mark Newton; b, Xistera coventryi sp. nov., female, left leg I, showing pseudoscopula hairs parallel to long axis, image, M. Ramírez; c, Miturgopelma spinisternis sp. nov., male, showing inward facing cymbium and bulb; d, Miturgopelma echidna sp. nov., eyes, showing relatively small AME and grate-shaped tapetum in PME; e, f, Xistera coventryi sp. nov., female, tarsal trichobothrium (e), dorsal leg I showing brighter trichobothria (f); g, Miturgopelma echinoides sp. nov., showing relatively large AME.

FIGURE 81. Miturgiella vulgaris sp. nov., male, QM S61019: a, b, palpal bulb, cymbium and tibia: a, ventral view; b, retrolateral view; c–e, scanning electron micrographs; c, tarsal organ; d, trichobothrial base, cuticle and setae; e, paired claws, showing non-tuft setae below claws.