Steatoda pallens Zamani & Marusik, 2025

Zamani, Alireza, Enayatnia, Masoumeh, Mirshekar, Ali, Mayvan, Mahmood Mehrafrooz, Kováč, Ľubomír & Marusik, Yuri M., 2025, New data on the spider fauna of Iran (Arachnida: Araneae), Part XII, Zootaxa 5601 (1), pp. 1-45 : 40

Steatoda pallens Zamani & Marusik , sp. nov.

Figs 1C , 23A‒B

Type material. Holotype ♀ ( ZMUT), IRAN: Sistan & Baluchistan Prov.: Zabol, 31°02'12.0"N 61°32'14.0"E, 480 m, 21.11.2020 (M. Enayatnia).

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the pale coloration of the new species.

Diagnosis. The new species is most similar to S. nobilis (Thorell, 1875) and S. maura . The females of all three species have an abdominal pattern consisted of a white oval shape surrounded by a broad blackish band, a character not found in other congeners in the region. Additionally, they have similar endogynes. However, the new species can be distinguished by its shorter, triangular septum (vs. subtrapezoidal and tongue-shaped in S. maura and parallelsided in S. nobilis , with a more elongated shape in both) (cf. Fig. 23 A and Van Keer et al. 2024: figs 24C, 26C). It further differs from S. nobilis by its anteriorly diverging receptacles (vs. converging) (cf. Fig. 23B and Van Keer et al. 2024: fig. 26D).

Description. Female (holotype). Habitus as in Fig. 1 С. Total length 5.55. Carapace 2.45 long, 2.05 wide. Eye sizes: AME: 0.18, ALE: 0.14, PME: 0.14, PLE: 0.14. Carapace, sternum, labium and maxillae yellowish brown. Chelicerae brown. Palps and legs yellowish brown, legs with faint brown broad darkening on patellae and distal parts of tibiae, metatarsi and tarsi. Abdomen greyish beige, dorsally with black circular marking, ventrolaterally with black scattered markings. Spinnerets brown. Measurements of legs: I: 11.98 (3.47, 1.26, 2.75, 3.12, 1.38), II: 8.68 (2.69, 1.08, 1.80, 2.16, 0.95), III: 6.94 (2.18, 0.96, 1.27, 1.65, 0.88), IV: 10.04 (3.10, 1.26, 2.14, 2.40, 1.14).

Epigyne as in Fig. 23 ; plate 1.4x wider than long; septum (Se) short triangular; insemination ducts (Id) weakly sclerotized, arch-shaped; receptacles (Re) oval, slightly longer than wide, diverging anteriorly, spaced by 1/2 width.

Male. Unknown.

Distribution. Known only from the type locality in Sistan & Baluchistan, southeastern Iran.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Habitus of Brignoliolus charitonovi (A), Cithaeron persicus sp. nov. (B), and Steatoda pallens sp. nov. (C), females, dorsal view.

FIGURE 23. Epigyne of Steatoda pallens sp. nov. A—macerated, ventral view; B—endogyne, dorsal view. Scale bars: 0.2 mm. Abbreviations: Id—insemination duct; Re—receptacle.