Liphistius lordae Platnick & Sedgwick, 1984

Schwendinger, Peter J., Huber, Siegfried, Lehmann-Graber, Christina, Ono, Hirotsugu, Aung, Mu Mu & Hongpadharakiree, Komsan, 2022, A taxonomic revision of the Liphistius birmanicus-group (Araneae: Liphistiidae) with the description of five new species, Revue suisse de Zoologie 129 (2), pp. 375-424 : 406-408

Liphistius lordae Platnick & Sedgwick, 1984

Figs 1 , 17-18

Liphistius lordae Platnick & Sedgwick, 1984: 10-11 , figs 18-19 (description of female). – Schwendinger, 1990: 332-334, figs 5-10 (description of males and females). – Schwendinger, 1998: fig. 1I (illustration of palpal organ). – Schwendinger, 1999: fig. 1I (reprint of illustration in Schwendinger, 1998).

Type: AMNH; female holotype (not examined); Myanmar, Shan State, west of Taunggyi Mountain, 5000 feet; 15.VII.1982; leg. W.C. Sedgwick.

Other material: MHNG; 2 males (one collected adult, the other matured 26.IX.1987) and 4 females; outskirts of Taunggyi City, 20°45’17”N, 97°02’27”E, 1560 m; 22.IX.1987; leg P. Schwendinger. No new material available .

Diagnosis: Medium-sized spiders with uniformly dark brown body colouration in both sexes, without recognizable annulations on legs and palps. Males distinguished from those of other species in the birmanicus -group by short paracymbium with a proximally protruding, rounded proximal-retrolateral heel ( Fig. 17G ) and by proventral contrategular process exceptionally wide, with a widely truncate apex in distal view ( Fig. 17A, C ). Females different from those of the same group by having exceptionally wide anterior lobes, no anterolateral processes on poreplate, posterior stalk with a medium-long constriction in its anterior part ( Fig. 18 ).

Additions to description: Males with scopulae weak on tarsi I-II, slightly denser on tarsi III-IV, covering distal 2/3 of tarsus I, distal 3/4 of tarsi II-III and distal 4/5 of tarsus IV. Male palps with moderately deep tibial apophysis (depth/length ratio ~ 1.5), only slightly set back from distal margin of tibia, carrying four long, pointed apical megaspines ( Fig. 17F ; Schwendinger, 1990: figs 5-7); paracymbium short, carrying fairly long retrodorsal spicules (distinctly longer than in L. lahu , L. metopiae sp. nov. and L. tung sp. nov.) and a large, arched retrolateral-proximal heel distinctly inclined proximad instead of pointing retrolaterad ( Fig. 17G ); cumulus indistinct, carrying a group of about 6 long strong bristles ( Fig. 17G ; Schwendinger, 1990: figs 6-7); subtegulum with indistinct apophysis; tegulum large, its distal margin not elevated, its proximal edge widely arched, finely serrate, distinctly bent and adpressed to membranous area below it ( Fig. 17D ; Schwendinger, 1990: figs 5-6); contrategulum with very wide proventral process ending in a widely truncate apex ( Fig. 17A, C ; Schwendinger, 1990: fig. 7); prolateral part of distal contrategular edge sharp but not elevated into a pronounced keel ( Fig. 17E ); proximal ledge on retrodorsal side of contrategulum pronounced ( Fig. 17A, C, E ); distal edge of contrategulum very wide and carrying ridges, its dorsal apex very narrowly rounded, almost pointed in distal view ( Fig. 17 A-C); para-embolic plate short, about as long as retroventral edge of embolus complex and not separated from it by an invagination ( Fig. 17A, D ); embolus proper narrowly divided, its sclerotised part strengthened by 3 longitudinal ribs reaching apex and carrying denticles distally; membranous embolus part distinctly shorter than sclerotised part, short area at its base strongly pigmented, with numerous longitudinal wrinkles and with fairly straight or widely and strongly asymmetrically angular distal margin ( Fig. 17E ). Females with uniformly dark legs and palps without annulations; vulval plates ( Fig. 18 ; Schwendinger, 1990: figs 8-10) with several hairs on lateral folds, one female even with a single hair on posterior stalk ( Fig. 18E ); poreplate wider than long, anteriorly wider than posteriorly, with a pair of very wide lobes on anterior margin, without anterolateral processes, posterior margins not bulged; CDO fairly small, quite variable in shape; receptacular cluster racemose, much longer than wide, reaching or almost reaching anterior margin of poreplate; posterior stalk clearly narrower than poreplate, axe-blade-shaped, with distinct anterior constriction, posterior margin wide and more or less strongly arched.

Variation: For carapace measurements and prefoveal setae counts see Table 1 . All specimens examined have well-developed AME. Variation in the shape of the proventral contrategular process is shown in Fig. 17 , variation in the shape of the vulval plates in Fig. 18 .

Relationships: Liphistius lordae possesses some quite unusual characters in the male and female copulatory organs that make it difficult to establish its relationships on a morphological basis. It clearly belongs to the birmanicus -group and it is apparently not very closely related to the geographically close Liphistius sp. that occurs near Kalaw or to L. pinlaung . Within the birmanicus -group a very wide distal contrategular margin is otherwise only found in L. pyinoolwin ( Fig. 17 A-C cf. Fig. 19 A-B), and both also share an adpressed posterior tegular edge, which are not very strong indications that both are more closely related to each other than each of them with any other known species. However, we believe that unknown species exist that are more closely related to either of these two species.

Distribution: Liphistius lordae is known only from the type locality in the mountains of the Shan State ( Fig. 1 ).

Figures

Fig. 1. Localities of species in the Liphistius birmanicus-group in northern Thailand, eastern Myanmar and southern China. Blue lines indicate major rivers, black lines national borders, grey lines major roads.

Fig. 17. Liphistius lordae, left palps of two males: male n°1 (A-B, D-G), male n°2 (C). (A) Palpal organ, distal view (dorsal side up). (B) Dorsal part of contrategulum and embolus proper, distal and slightly prolateral view. (C) Contrategulum, distal view. (D) Distal part of palpal organ, ventral view; bent and adpressed proximal edge of tegulum indicated by arrow. (E) Palpal organ and distal margin of tarsus, prolateral view. (F) Tibial apophysis, retrolateral and slightly proximal view. (G) Proximal part of tarsus, ventral view. Scale line 1.0 mm.

Fig. 18. Liphistius lordae, vulval plates of four females; dorsal view (A, C, E, G) and ventral view (B, D, F, H); all taken from exuviae. (A-B) Female n°1. (C-D) Female n°2. (E-F) Female n°3. (G-H) Female n°4; note pathologically enlarged vesicle on left side of poreplate. Scale lines 1.0 mm.

Fig. 19. Liphistius pyinoolwin, palps of two males: matured 16.X.2014 (A-E), matured 24.IX.2014 (F). (A) Left palpal organ, distal view (dorsal side up). (B) Left embolus complex and dorsal part of contrategulum, distal and slightly proventral view. (C) Left palpal organ and distal margin of tarsus, prolateral view. (D) Left palpal organ, ventral and slightly proximal view; bent and adpressed proximal edge of tegulum indicated by arrow. (E) Distal part of left tibia and proximal part of tarsus, ventral view. (F) Distal margin of right tibia and proximal part of tarsus, ventral view. Scale lines 1.0 mm (A-D; E-F). Abbreviation: l - lobate prolateral protrusion on base of embolus complex.