Kaliana, HUBER, 2000

HUBER, BERNHARD A., 2000, New World Pholcid Spiders (Araneae: Pholcidae): A Revision At Generic Level, Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2000 (254), pp. 1-348 : 271-274

KALIANA , NEW GENUS

TYPE SPECIES: Kaliana yuruani , new species.

ETYMOLOGY: The generic name honors the Kaliana Indians , a riverine people in Bolívar, Venezuela, widely known and respected among other Indians for their elaborate healing and religious rituals. By the 1980s, about 15 Kaliana were still alive. Gender feminine.

DIAGNOSIS/DESCRIPTION: See diagnosis and description of single known species below.

GENERIC RELATIONSHIPS: The apophysis ventrally on the male palpal femur is similar in position and direction (i.e., pointing in a proximal direction) to that in some other mainly Venezuelan genera ( Mecoloesthus , Systenita , Coryssocnemis ). Also, the sclerotized area at the basis of the cheliceral lam- inae resembles a similar structure in some Mecoloesthus and Coryssocnemis species (figs. 1001, 1018). Otherwise, both genitalic and nongenitalic characters are highly autapomorphic, providing no clues on possible relatives.

DISTRIBUTION: Known only from type locality in eastern Venezuela.

Kaliana yuruani , new species Figures 1090–1100

TYPE: Male holotype from 26 km N Rio Yuruani, La Gran Sabana , Bolívar, Venezuela ; ‘‘forest grassland edge,’’ malaise, June 29–Aug. 10, 1987 (S. & J. Peck), in AMNH .

ETYMOLOGY: Named for the Yuruani River close to the type locality. The specific name is a noun in apposition.

DIAGNOSIS: Small pholcid (total length ~ 2 mm) with eight eyes, relatively long legs, roughly globular opisthosoma; easily distinguished from any known pholcid by the extremely long procursus (figs. 1096–1097), the long apophysis ventrally on the palpal femur (fig. 1098), the high eye turret with triads far apart (figs. 1090, 1095), the modified male clypeus (fig. 1095), and the armature of the male chelicerae (figs. 1092–1093).

MALE (holotype): Total length 1.9, carapace width 1.0; leg 1: 23.1 (5.5+0.3+5.6 +10.0+1.7), tibia 2: 3.5, tibia 3: 2.5, tibia 4: 3.5; tibia 1 l/d: 76. Habitus as in fig. 1090. Carapace with deep thoracic groove, ochreyellow, slightly darker spot medially (fig. 1094), ocular area elevated, eight eyes separated into two lateral triads, and AME isolated in front (fig. 1095); distance PME-ALE about 50% of PME diameter. Clypeus tapering in front, with sclerotized knob at tip (figs. 1094–1095). Sternum wide (fig. 1091). Chelicerae ochre-yellow with dark brown to black apophyses proximally (figs. 1092– 1093). Palps as in figs. 1096–1097, ochreyellow proximally, distally brown to black (procursus); coxa with distinct retrolateral apophysis, femur with small dorsal protrusion and conspicuous ventrolateral apophysis (fig. 1098), procursus structurally simple but extremely long (figs. 1096–1097), bulb simple with embolar division ending in two transparent laminae (figs. 1099–1100). Legs light brown, with indistinct darker rings on femora (distally) and tibiae (proximally); without spines, without curved and vertical hairs; retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 5%. Opisthosoma pale greenish-gray with some darker greenish spots dorsally (fig. 1090).

FEMALE: Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION: Known only from type locality.

MATERIAL EXAMINED: VENEZUELA: Bolívar: 26 km N Rio Yuruani, La Gran Sabana: type above.