Scytodes annulipes Simon, 1907

Keer, Johan Van & Bosmans, Robert, 2014, A new species of Scytodes from Algeria (Araneae: Scytodidae), with a review of the species from the Maghreb, Zootaxa 3894 (1), pp. 131-140 : 134-135

Scytodes annulipes Simon, 1907 , stat. n.

Figs 17–20, 24, 28, 33

Scytodes bertheloti: Simon 1885: 40 ; Simon 1899: 82; Simon 1910: 305; Denis 1964: 105; Brignoli 1976: 151. Scytodes bertheloti annulipes Simon, 1907: 249 ; Simon 1908a: 421; Simon 1910: 305; Caporiacco 1936: 71.

Note. Authors who cited S. bertheloti in the past were not always consequent in using the name of the nominal species S. bertheloti or the subspecies S. b. annulipes .

Diagnosis. Scytodes annulipes is closely related to S. thoracica . Males differ by the elongated legs, with Femora I twice as long as the carapace, the presence of a row of short black spines on Femora I and the bulb gradually narrowing into the stylus. Females differ by the scutula separated by less than their diameter. Usually they can also be separated by their colour. In S. annulipes , the longitudinal stripes on the carapace are narrower and not interconnected as in S. thoracica , and the abdomen has rows of spots instead of stripes as in S. thoracica .

Previous records. ALGERIA, Djelfa, Tadmit ( Simon 1899, sub S. bertheloti ). LIBYA, Gharyan, Djebel Tigrina (= Djebel Taghrinnah; Simon 1909, sub S. b. annulipes ); Sabah, Gadua (= Gheddoua; Denis 1964, sub S. bertheloti ), Sebha (=Sabah; Caporiacco 1936; Denis 1964, sub S. bertheloti ); Sha‘bīyat al Buţnān: Porto Bardia (=Bardiya; Caporiacco 1928, sub S. bertheloti ). TUNISIA, Gabes, Gabes ( Simon 1885, sub S. bertheloti ); Kairouan, Jebel Trozza ( Brignoli, 1976, sub S. bertheloti ), Kairouan ( Brignoli 1976); Kebili, Nefzaoua ( Simon 1909, sub S. b. annulipes ), Oum Ali ( Simon, 1885, sub S. bertheloti ); Sidi Bouzid: Jebel Bou Hedma ( Simon 1885, sub S. bertheloti ); Tataouine, Tatatouine ( Simon 1910, sub S. bertheloti ).

New records. ALGERIA: Djelfa, Djebel Sénalba, 1350 m, pitfalls in Pinus plantation, 1♀ (CRB), 10.VI.1989; El Oued, El Hamraia, 33 m, 1♂, litter in palm yard, 1 ♂ (CRB), 1.XI.1989; Ghardaia, Beni Isguen, 525m, pitfalls in palm yard, 3♂♂ 2♀♀ (CRB), 3.XI.1989; Illizi, Bordj Omar Driss, litter in irrigated gardens, 1♂ 1♀ (CRB), 6.V.1990; Khenchela, Forêt des Beni Ouled, SE Djebel Tarzout, 1500 m, stones in grassland in open Cedrus atlanticus forest, 1 ♀ 1 subadult ♀, (CRB), 15.X.1987; M’sila, Bou Saada S., Aïn Oghrab, 650 m, pitfalls in Pinus forest, 2♂ 1 ♀ (CRB), 23.VI.1990; Skikda, Bouchata, 400 m, stones in grassland, 3 subadult ♀♀ (CRB), 12.III.1990; Souk Arras, Bou Hadjar, 900 m, stones in degraded Quercus ilex forest, 4 subadult ♀♀ (CRB), 9.II.1988 (CRB); Tamanrasset, Tehe-n-Kalan, 20 km S. Djebel Telertheba, 1♂ (CRB), K. De Smet leg., 5.II.2003. TUNISIA, Ben Arous, Jebel Ressas, 1 ♀ (CRB), 28.I.2003; Bizerte, Gareet et Mebtouba, between Fejja and Zana, 5m, stones bordering salt marsh, 2♀♀ (CRB), 25.I.1995; Jendouba, Bulla Reghia, 500 m, stones in Roman ruins, 1 ♂ 3♀♀ (CRB), 24.I.1990, Ghardimaou W., 250 m, stones in grassland, 3 subadult ♀♀ (CRB), 5.III.2005; Kairouan, Hayeb el Ayoun, 350 m, stones in steppe, 2♀♀ (CRB), 26.I.1995; Kasserine, Thala 5 km W., stones in Pinus forest, 1 ♀ (CRB), 10.V.2006; El Kef, Sakiet Sidi Youcef E., 859m, stones in Pinus forest, 3♀♀ (CRB), 5.III.2005; Medenine, El Hallouf, stones in Eucalyptus plantation, 3♀♀ (CRB), 13.XII.1989, Ksar Djouama, 480 m, stones in steppe, 1♂ 2♀♀ (CRB), 13.XII.1999; Nabeul, Grombalia, 60 m, stones in wasteland, 1 ♂ 1♀ (CRB), 25.I.1995; Siliana, Siliana 20 km S., road to Kesra, stones in Pinus halepensis forest, 1 ♂ 2 subadult ♀♀ (CRB), 27.I.2003; Tataouine, Chenini, 400 m, litter in palm yard, 1 ♀ (CRB), 14.XII.1999; Kirchaou E., 85m, stones in steppe, 1♂ 1♀ (CRB), 14.XII.1999; Tunis, La Goulette, 5m, stones in Pinus plantation, 2♂♂ (CRB), 30.II.2003; Zaghouan, El Fahs, Tuburbu Majus ruins, 175m, stones in ruins, 12♂♂ 13♀♀(CRB), 24.I.1995, Jebel Zaghouan, 500 m, 1 subadult ♀, stones in Pinus halepensis forest, 24.I.1995 (CRB), Saouaf E., 750 m, stones in Juniperus maquis, 1 ♀ (CRB), 24.I.1995, Zriba village, 100 m, stones along Oued el Hammam, 2 ♂ 3♀♀ 3 subadult ♀♀ (CJVK, CRB).

Comments. Scytodes bertheloti was originally described by Lucas (1838) from the Canary Islands. Lucas’s figure 9 shows a spider with long legs, without spots on the prosoma, and without annulations of the legs. In 1907, Simon described its subspecies S. b. annulipes from material from Tunisia, evidently differing from S. bertheloti by its annulated legs. According to Wunderlich (1987), S. bertheloti is a doubtful species, its original description more resembling that of Loxosceles , while S. b. annulipes is a different species. This view is followed here and the subspecies is elevated to species rank S. annulipes Simon, 1907 n . stat. Scytodes bertheloti is a species inquirenda from the Canary Islands.

Scytodes annulipes appears to have a peculiar distribution pattern ( Fig. 33 ). It is the dominant Scytodes species in Tunisia and occurs also in the neighbouring part of Algeria, reaching even the Hoggar and Tassili mountains in the extreme south. It was also cited several times from Libya and these citations are probably correct. It is absent from Morocco. In the literature, the species was further cited from Spain ( Melic 1994), Israel ( Simon 1892), Malta ( Baldacchino et al. 1993), Turkmenistan ( Dunin 1992) and the Seychelles ( Saaristo 1997, 2010), but these should all be verified. Saaristo (1997) presents drawings of “ Scytodes bertheloti ” from the Seychelles. The figure of the male palp corresponds to our species, but in the female, the scutula are separated by twice their diameter, while they are separated by only one diameter in our material.

Figures

FIGURE 33. Records of Scytodes annulipes (circles) and S. major (triangles) in the study area. Open circles & triangles: citations. Closed circles and triangles: new records.