Paratheridula quadrimaculata (Banks) Levi, Herbert W., 1957

Levi, Herbert W., 1957, The North American spider genera Paratheridula, Tekellina, Pholcomma and Archerius (Araneae: Theridiidae), Transactions of the American Microscopical Society 76 (2), pp. 105-115 : 106-107

Paratheridula quadrimaculata (Banks) , comb. nov.

Figs. 1-6,48 on map

Mysmena quadrimaculaia Banks, 1896 ,Trans. Amer. Ent. Soc.,23: 66; 1910, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 72: 22. Petrunkevitch, 1911, Bull. Amer. Mus. Nat. Hist., 29: 184. Roewer, 1942,Katalog der Araneae, 1: 394.

Theridion quadrimaculaium, Bryant, 1933 , Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 74: 173, Fig. 4,♂.

Theridion arcadicum Gertsch and Archer, 1942 ,Amer. Mus. Novitates, 1171: 4, Fig. 24,♀. Archer, 1946, Paper Alabama Mus. Nat. Hist., 22: 45. New synonymy.

Allotheridion ( Allotheridion) arcadicum, Archer, 1950 , Ibid",30: 20. New synonymy.

Female: Carapace yellow, with narrow black margin, head and eye region dusky. Clypeus with black line. Sternum yellow, sides dusky, legs dusky yellow. Abdomen gray, dorsum with three to six paired black patches which may be small (Fig. 6) or very large and continuous; white pigment spots between black patches; sides and venter gray to black with lighter gray spots. Diameter of anterior median eyes about two-thirds that of others. Anterior medians one diameter apart, two-thirds diameter from laterals. Epigynum (Fig. 2) a clear plate with two round openings, which may be touching or separated by their diameter. Epigynum covered with some extraneous material, which has to be removed. This may be present only in mated females. Total length, 1.4-2.2 mm. Measurements of one Florida specimen, total length, 1.7 mm.; carapace 0.65 mm. long, 0.64 mm. wide; first femur, 0.78 mm. long; patella and tibia, 0.88 mm. long; metatarsus, 0.62 mm. long; tarsus, 0.40 mm. long; second patella and tibia, 0.66 mm. long; third, 0.53 mm. long; fourth, 0.83 mm. long.

Male: Chelicerae fused less than one-fourth their length, with a large tooth on end of fang furrow margin. Fang in front of tooth (Fig. 5). Palpus illustrated by figures 3 and 4. Measurements: total length, 1.5 mm.; carapace, 0.78 mm. long, 0.67 mm. wide; first femur, 0.89 mm. long; patella and tibia, 1.00 mm. long; metatarsus, 0.65 mm. long; tarsus, 0.39 mm. long; second patella and tibia, 0.71 mm. long; third, 0.57 mm. long; fourth, 0.79 mm. long.

Archer (1946) reports this species from under loose rock and card¬ board trash in Alabama.

Type localities: Female holotype of Mysmena quadrimaculata from Punta Gorda , Florida (A. T. Slosson) in the Museum of Comparative Zoology. Female holotype and female paratype of Theridion arcadicum from W. of Arcadia , De Soto County, Florida, March 31, 1938 (W. J. Gertsch) in the American Museum of Natural History .

Records: Florida: Alachua Co. ; Calhoun Co. ; Collier Co. ; Dade Co. ; Hillsborough Co. ; Lake Co. ; Lee Co. ; Pasco Co. ; Pinellas Co. Alabama: Pike Co. ; Tuscaloosa Co. Mississippi: Bolivar Co. ; Forrest Co. ; Wilkinson Co. Louisiana: Caddo Co. ; Camp Planche . San Luis Potosí : Tamazunchale . Colima : Potrero Grande . Morelos : Teomixla. Panama: Boquete ; Old Panama City . Canal Zone: 3 mi. N. of Pedro Miguel ; Barro Colorado Island . Cuba: near Havana.