Plexippus tectonicus Prószyński, 2003

Prószyński, Jerzy, 2017, Remarks on the genus Plexippus C. L. Koch, 1846 (Araneae: Salticidae), Ecologica Montenegrina 13, pp. 39-69 : 66-67

Plexippus tectonicus Prószyński, 2003

Figures 2Q 1 , 4 F-G, 5E-E1, 7A

Plexippus tectonicus Prószyński, 2003: 145 , f. 581-582, 586, 591, 736-737 (Dmf).

Plexippus yinae Peng & Li, 2003b: 755 , f. 5A-E (Dm). syn. new.

Material. Holotype male, allotype female: Israel: Geshur, pitfall trap, paratype males Kallia. Kept in Hebrew University , Jerusalem and Ben Gurion University Sede Boqer.

Remarks. Plexippus yinae is hereby removed from synonymy of P. clemens and considered synonym of Plexippus tectonicus because of similarity of their palps (compare Figs 4F and G ). Both descriptions were published in 2003, however that of Prószyński's was published with date "1 March203", that of Peng & Li with date " December 2003 ".

Diagnosis. About half the size of P. paykulli , resembling P. "devorans " from which differs by black "flag" of setae on palpal femur, broader embolus and white line along palpal tibia.

Description. Male. Carapace dark brown with traces of white, adpressed setae, with white, thin thoracic streak expanded into large, regular round spot in the foveal area ( Fig. 2Q 1 ), delimited from eyefield by fawn transverse line. Sides light fawn with whitish adpressed setae, with dark brown margin along ventral edge of carapace. Abdomen with median light streak, followed laterally by a pair of dark brown streaks, expanded further on sides and ventral surface. There are four white chevrons on posterior half of light streak, interconnected medially. Posterior angle of abdomen dark, dorsal spinnerets dark brown with lighter tips. Face uniformly dark brown, eyes I surrounded by yellow setae. Clypeus dark brown, almost bald, with a few longer gray setae under AME, stretching diagonally and overhanging chelicerae, there are also sparse peculiar setae swollen apically on clypeus and entering chelicerae. Chelicerae dark brown. Palps light brown to yellow, cymbium dorsally with contrasting round, white spot of adpressed setae. Line of adpressed white setae terminally on femur and along patella. There is characteristic retrolateral "flag" - bunch of dark, brown or black setae on palpal femur. Palpal organ - see Figs 4 F-G. Legs brown with mosaic of black spots: leg I dark brown with apical end of tarsus yellow, leg II brown with darker metatarsus, III-IV yellow with brownish shade. Length of body 3.4 mm.

Paratype male is much lighter, possibly due to fading, with darker areas brown, whitish setae on yellow background are less striking. Dark areas on thorax consist of adpressed brown, elongated scales, also on abdomen dark spots consist of brown, adpressesd scales. Palpal organ and "grey flag" on palpal femur as in holotype specimen. Legs yellow.

Female (allotype). Eyefield light brown, covered by unnoticeable, colorless adpressed scales. Thorax yellow with sparse darker, brownish olive adpressed setae, concentration of which makes four elongate darker spots on posterior slope of thorax. Face light yellow with sparse, white setae on clypeus, white setae encircling eyes. Chelicerae creamy yellow, arising horizontally and almost immediately bending perpendicularly down. Pedipalps yellow with sparse, long, stiff setae dark and whitish. Abdomen pinkish yellow, with lighter median, light delimited streak, lateral part of dorsum darker brown, due to adpressed brown scales, anteriorly group of longer, dark bristles, There is a pair of white spots in four fifth of length of abdomen, encircled by dark brown scales. Spinnerets dark yellow. Abdomen ventrally lighter pinkish yellow. Sternum and coxae yellow with pinkish hue. Epigyne covered by waxy secretion blurring its shape, its correct appearance become visible after bath in KOH solution ( Figs 5 E-E1). Legs yellow with short and sparse dark setae. Length of body 5.5 mm.

Nomenclatural correction:

Plexippus yinae Peng & Li, 2003 = Plexippus tectonicus Prószyński, 2003 syn. new.

Plexippus cf. tectonicus - photographs of a live male specimen from Yemen - (Photo B. Knoflach, published in Wesolowska W., van Harten A. 2007. Fauna of Arabia, 23: 246-248, f. 33-36) show a species resembling closely Plexippus tectonicus but differing by intensely black coloration of carapace, abdomen and legs I, with contrasting white pattern, but the white foveal spot, anteriorly to thin petiole, is not round but diamond shaped. Setae around lateral external half of eyes I median are reddish (those on median half of these orbits are white) and correspond with red orbital setae around eyes I lateral, while median parts of orbits I are white ( Figs 2 Q-S). White spot on cymbium is striking, "flag" on palpal femur consist of both black and white setae. Lack of specimens do not permit to study palps. I assume that the species should be closely related to P. tectonicus , but separate.

Figures

Figure 1. Modern standard of taxonomic documentation of a species of Salticidae (on example of Plexippus petersi (Karsch, 1878, male A-F and female A1-F1), as befitting in 2017. It consists of precise diagnostic drawings of palps - E-F, epigyne and internal structure of epigyne E1-F1, repeated also as color photograph (to reduce inadequacies resulting from subjective interpretation by an artist) - D-D1, color photographs of unchanged habitus of specimens of both sexes (dorsal, frontal and ventral views, missing lateral view) A-C1. The size of individual illustrations permits clear perception of diagnostic characters.

Figure 2a. Color pattern and body shape of species of Plexippus.A-D - Plexippus paykulli (Audouin, 1826) males, E-F - P. paykulli female - dorsal & frontal view, epigyne, G - P. setipes-1, H-I - P. setipes Karsch, 1879, Japan, epigyne (no data), J - P. petersi (Karsch, 1878) Kenya, K-L - P. petersi Queensland female and epigyne.

Figure 4a. Diagnostic characters of species of Plexippus. A - Plexippus paykulli (Audouin, 1826) (palp 1/3 larger than remaining species), B - P. gershomi sp. n., C - P. sp. [devorans?? - unlabeled specimen in O. Pickard-Cambridge collection, from a jar with specimens from Palestine], D - P. bhutani Zabka, 1990, D1 - P. minor Wesolowska & van Harten, 2010, E- P. petersi (Karsch, 1878), F - P. tectonicus Prószyński, 2003, G - Plexippus yinae Peng X., Li S., 2003 = P. tectonicus [?], H - Plexippus strandi Spassky, 1939 - from Turkmenistan, K - P. strandi Spassky, 1939, K1 - P. dushanbinus (Andreeva, 1969), L - P. setipes-1 Karsch, 1879, L1 - "P. setipes-2" Peng & Li, 2003, [another palp, hypothetically matching holotype of P. setipes - see Figs 9R-S], M - P. setipes.