Nesticella qiaoqiensis, Lin, Yucheng, Ballarin, Francesco & Li, Shuqiang, 2016

Lin, Yucheng, Ballarin, Francesco & Li, Shuqiang, 2016, A survey of the spider family Nesticidae (Arachnida, Araneae) in Asia and Madagascar, with the description of forty-three new species, ZooKeys 627, pp. 1-168 : 27

Taxon classification Animalia Araneae Nesticidae

Nesticella qiaoqiensis sp. n. Figs 26, 82

Type material.

Holotype ♀ (IZCAS), CHINA: Sichuan Province, Baoxing County, Qiaoqi Town, Zeyin Village (30.73852°N, 102.74850°E, 2247 m), cave without a name, 7.V.2015, Y. Li & X. Chen leg.

Etymology.

The specific name is derived from the type locality; adjective.

Diagnosis.

This new species is similar to Nesticella gracilenta (see Liu and Li 2013b: 512, figs 13-16), Nesticella xixia sp. n. (Figs 37 A–D, 38 E–G), Nesticella semicircularis (see Liu and Li 2013b: 521, figs 19-22) and Nesticella shanlinensis (see Liu and Li 2013b: 521-522, figs 23-26) for the general shape of vulva. It can be separated from the first three species by the wider and longer scape (Sp) (Fig. 26D), the longer and straighter ducts (Fd and Cd) (Fig. 26F), the more coiled fertilization ducts (Fd) (Fig. 26F) and the darker carapace (Fig. 26A, C). Nesticella qiaoqiiensis sp. n. can be distinguished from Nesticella shanlinensis by the longer ducts provided with more coils (Fig. 26F vs. figs 24C, 26D). The wide, lobed scape, the short copulatory ducts and the general shape of the strongly coiled fertilization ducts (Fd) (Fig. 26 E–F) easily separate the new species from all other species of the brevipes -group.

Description.

Habitus as in Fig. 26 A–C. Carapace pale yellow, dark at margins and in the center. Cervical groove and fovea indistinct. Mouthparts yellowish brown. Sternum yellow, strongly pigmented, with sparse long setae. Female palps and legs yellow, proximally lighter in femora. Opisthosoma greyish with irregular dark marks.

Epigyne (Fig. 26 D–F): weakly sclerotized, translucent. Reddish brown vulva (Fig. 26D). Scape short, flat and lobed, with almost round margins, translucent, laterally sclerotized, protruding beyond the epigynal posterior margin (Fig. 26D). Spermathecae ovate, separated by about 1.6 diameters (Fig. 26F). Fertilization ducts long and strongly coiled, reaching the spermathecae with four loops. Copulatory ducts short, mesially swollen and basally narrower (Fig. 26 E–F).

Female (holotype). Total length 2.77. Carapace 1.09 long, 0.96 wide. Opisthosoma 1.76 long, 1.55 wide. Clypeus height 0.19. Sternum 0.58 long, 0.65 wide. Leg measurements: see Appendix A.

Male. Unknown.

Habitat.

Cave.

Distribution.

Known only from the type locality (Fig. 82).