Leptopilos, Levy, Gershom, 2009

Levy, Gershom, 2009, New ground-spider genera and species with annexed checklist of the Gnaphosidae (Araneae) of Israel, Zootaxa 2066, pp. 1-49 : 8

Leptopilos n. gen.

Type-species: Drassus tenerrimus O.P.- Cambridge, 1872

Etymology.The generic name is a combination derived from Leptodrassus and pilos, a cap in Greek, a marked diagnostic sclerite on the female epigynum , characteristic of the new genus.

Diagnosis. Small gnaphosids with colouration, body shape and general eye configuration as in Leptodrassus . AME, the largest eyes, are borne on a common black patch. Male without dorsal scutum. Chelicerae with small conventional teeth, unlike the peculiar, angular teeth of Leptodrassus . Labium wider than long. Palpus of male apically armed with closely grouped, often pointed laminae and a single-lobed tibial retrolateral apophysis. Female epigynum with a median cavity and a broad, prominent cap-like anterior hood unlike the scape of Leptodrassus .

Comments. The former genus Leptodrassus has been recently divided by having the cheliceral dentition into two groups ( Murphy, 2007). Leptodrassus includes those species which like the type-species L. femineus have two large angular retromarginal teeth, while the recently described genus Leptodrassex Murphy , with L. simoni as type-species, possesses small, discrete conventional teeth. However, among the latter, a definite group of species is distinguished by their genital characters, namely a peculiar cap-like sclerite on the female epigynum , and closely grouped laminae on the male palpus, unlike L. simoni ( Levy, 1999b, figs 35–37). The females within Leptopilos are easily separated from each other by the different shapes of the epigynal hood. Apart from the type-species L. tenerrimus the following species are here placed in Leptopilos : L. pupa Dalmas, 1919 (not Chatzaki et al., 2002a, b = L. levantinus n. sp.), L. hadjissaranti Chatzaki, 2002 , L. manolisi Chatzaki, 2002 , L. levantinus n. sp. and L. lakhish n. sp.