Australoechemus Schmidt & Piepho, 1994

Sherwood, Danniella, Marusik, Yuri M., Sharp, Adam & Ashmole, Philip, 2023, A survey of Gnaphosidae (Arachnida, Araneae) from Ascension Island with description of a new species of Australoechemus Schmidt & Piepho, 1994, African Invertebrates 64 (3), pp. 291-302 : 291

Australoechemus Schmidt & Piepho, 1994

Australoechemus Schmidt & Piepho in Schmidt et al. 1994: 101.

Type species.

Australoechemus oecobiophilus Schmidt & Piepho, 1994 by original designation.

Diagnosis

(tentative, based on species known from adults but not the type species, known only from an immature holotype). Murphy (2007: 13) placed Australoechemus into the Drassodes Group; genera of this informal grouping were defined based on to their relatively large size, "plain, tawny-light, light greyish abdomen, occasionally patterned", presence of a notch at the apex of the trochanters, and absence of a dorsal scutum in the male. At the generic level, Australoechemus (sensu Murphy, 2007) differs from other gnaphosids by the male palp with a U-shaped sperm duct not meandering, running along margins of the tegulum (vs. meandering, or not located on the margin of the tegulum in other presently known genera) and the presence of a tegular anteroprolateral membranous lamellar extension (Al) (Al absent in other presently known genera).

Remarks.

This genus was described to accommodate two new species from the Cape Verde Islands: A. oecobiophilus Schmidt & Piepho, 1994 and A. celer Schmidt & Piepho, 1994. Australoechemus oecobiophilus was chosen as the type species although its holotype is a juvenile specimen. The diagnosis and illustrations given in the paper are very poor, for instance the generic diagnosis comprises solely the following short and vague sentence: "Von Echemus Simon, 1878 durch das Fehlen eines Putzkammes an Metatarsus III und IV unterschieden. Die Gattung scheint Xerophaeus Purcell, 1907 nahezustehen" ["Distinguished from Echemus Simon, 1878 by the absence of preening combs on metatarsi III and IV. The genus appears to be close to Xerophaeus Purcell, 1907"] ( Schmidt et al. 1994: 101). A detailed illustrated redescription is given for A. celer by Murphy (2007), and it is on this greatly improved work that we decide to place A. vickyae sp. nov. in this genus, given general similarities in the overall structure of the male palp and female epigyne. It is essential that future workers clarify the taxonomy of the type species A. oecobiophilus based on adult specimens. This is outside the scope of the present work.