Brachythele media Kulczyński, 1897

Dimitrov, Dragomir & Zonstein, Sergei, 2022, A taxonomic contribution to the genus Brachythele Ausserer, 1871 (Araneae, Nemesiidae) with a description of a new species from Rhodope Mountains, Bulgaria, Zootaxa 5159 (4), pp. 583-592 : 587-590

Brachythele media Kulczyński, 1897

Figs 16–25

B. media Kulczyński , in Chyzer & Kulczyński, 1897: 283.

B. (?) media Polenec, 1978: 371 , figs 1–3.

B. media: Le Peru, 2011: 88 , fig. 43.

B. media: Naumova et al., 2016: 505 , figs 2A, 3A–B.

Type material. Female holotype, Croatia, Bacar (Buccari, as labeled), 04.1890, no other data ( MIZW; not examined) .

Other material examined. 1 male, Slovenia, Mt. Slovnik , ca. 1000 m, 26.10.1976, A. Polenec leg. ( NHML) . 1 male, Slovenia, close to Komen, karst, 20.10.1982, J. Wunderlich leg. ( SMF) .

Diagnosis (partial, male). The male of B. media appears to be similar to males of B. denieri (sensu Drensky 1937) and B. varrialei (Dalmas, 1921) , by the characteristic gradually tapering embolus lacking any embolic keels ( Figs 22–25 ). Males can be distinguished from those of the former species by several characters, such as a less swollen palpal tibia, slightly shorter embolus, a noticeably shorter tibial spur with narrower and longer megaspines ( Figs 19, 21 cf. Lazarov et al., 2001, figs. 3–4), and from the latter—by the aspinose cymbium and the shape of the distal portion of embolus which is less curved and not dilated at the apex ( Figs 22–25 ), while, in males of B. varrialei , the cymbium bears spines and the embolus is slightly twisted and bears a certainly flattened and broadened tip (see Raven, 1985, fig. 89).

Redescription (male/SMF). Measurements: Total length 12.50; carapace length 5.44, width 4.26; sternum length 2.57, width 2.11; labium length 0.53, width 0.95; maxilla length 1.94; abdomen length (including spinnerets) 6.50, width 3.85; PLS length 0.63, diameter 0.27; PLE length 1.96 (0.93, 0.54, 0.49), maximal diameter 0.51; Palp, length of segments: femur 2.42, patella 1.09, tibia 1.82, cymbium 0.93, bulbus length 1.50. Leg measurements: Leg I—12.96 (3.89, 2.13, 2.42, 2.69, 1.83), Leg II—12.22 (3.62, 2.01, 2.29, 2.48, 1.82), Leg III—11.57 (3.38, 1.64, 2.04, 2.88, 1.63), Leg IV—16.11 (4.40, 2.19, 3.62, 4.03, 1.87). Eye diameters. ALE 0.32, AME 0.18, PLE 0.25, PME 0.15. AME–AME 0.15, AME–ALE 0.13, ALE–PLE 0.08, PME–PME 0.41, PME–PLE 0.06.

Habitus as in Fig 16 . Color. Carapace medium brownish orange, with darker radial stripes and lighter lateral margins ( Fig 17 ). Legs lighter than carapace. Sternum, labium, maxillae and coxae light yellowish orange. Sternal sigilla contrasting and well-visible, small, widely oval and submarginal ( Fig 18 ). Chelicerae reddish brown. Abdomen light greyish brown, dorsally with darker chestnut brown pattern consisting of large median spot and few incomplete and diffuse paired lateral chevrons ( Fig 16 ). Spinnerets uniformly pale greyish brown ( Fig 20 ).

Eyes. Eye region noticeably elevated. Anterior eye row procurved, posterior one, as seen from the dorsal side, slightly recurved. AME, PLE, and PME about equal in size, ALE considerably larger.

Other somatic characters. Carapace dorsally covered with fine dark and silver hairs. Fovea deep and recurved. Chelicerae with 9 promarginal teeth and 3 moderately small mesobasal denticles. Dorsally covered with long, weak, dense hairs. Maxillae with 20–25 very small cuspules in the prolateral basal part ( Fig 18 ). Tibia I preapically with proventral spur bearing 2 megaspines ( Figs 19, 21 ). Scopula: distal and entire on metatarsi I–II, entire on tarsi I–II; widely divided and mixed with setae on tarsus III; sparse and rudimentary on tarsus IV. Trichobothria 7–8 in each of two rows on tibiae, 12–14 on metatarsi, 12–13 on tarsi. Paired claws with 6–7 teeth in each row.

Palp ( Figs 22–25 ). Femur, patella, and cymbium spineless. Tibia with 2 long dorsal and 15–20 slightly shorter ventral spiniform setae. Bulbus pear-shaped, its embolic portion narrow, slightly curved, and gradually tapered.

Female. See Ausserer (1871) and Naumova et al. (2016).

Distribution. Albania, Croatia and Slovenia (World Spider Catalog, 2021).

Notes. The male of B. media was first depicted (including figures of the habitus, the palp, and the tibial spur) by Polenec (1978). These illustrations, however, were not accompanied by a formal text description. This is thus a first full description of the conspecific male. The only morphometric trait provided by Polenec (1978) is the total male body length: 15 mm. Both males studied and measured in the course of the current study are 12.5 mm long. One male was collected by A. Polenec. Since the first Slovenian record by Polenec (1978) was based on two males, we do not know if this author was inaccurate, or if the indicated body length corresponds to another male specimen.

Figures

FIGURES 16–21. Brachythele media, male (SMF). 16 habitus, dorsal, 17 carapace; 18 sternum; 19 tibia I, ventral; 20 spinnerets, ventral; 21 tibia I, lateral. Scale 16—2 mm, 17–18—1 mm, 19–21—0.5 mm.

FIGURES 22–25. Brachythele media (22–23 NHML, 24–25 SMF), male palp. 22 prolateral; 23 ventral; 24 retrolateral, 25 proventral. Scale 0.5 mm.