Wajane stilleri, Anna S. Dippenaar-Schoeman, 1989

Anna S. Dippenaar-Schoeman, 1989, The African species of the subfamily Penestominae (Araneae: Eresidae): with descriptions of two new species, Phytophylactica 21, pp. 131-134 : 134

Wajane stilleri spec. nov. Fig. 2,7-8

Types

Female holotype, South Africa, Donkerkloof, Du Toit's kloof , Paarl , elevation 300 m, 33° 45' S, 18° 50' E, found in silk-lined tunnels under exfoliated section of rock, in a boulder, 3. viii. 1975, M. Stiller, deposited with one immature female in the National Collection of Arachnida ( NCA 88/29 ) .

Etymology

Named after Martin Stiller, formerly of the Plant Protection Research Institute, collector of the type material.

Diagnosis

The female of the genus Wajane is described here for the first time. It differs from W. armata , the only other known species, in colour, the absence of white setae on the carapace and white patches on the anterolateral corners of the abdomen.

Description

Female Size (n=l): total length 3,72; carapace width 0,96; carapace length 1,52.

Carapace smooth and shiny; dirty grey, paler anteriorly, dark rim around posterior edge; eyes encircled with black; fovea a shallow depression, edged with black M-shaped marking. Carapace longer than wide, flattened, lateral margins of thorax parallel, clypeus centrally slightly protruding; carapace clothed with few brown to translucent thin setae. Eyes situated close to anterior margin; anterior eye row straight, posterior row recurved; ALE very close to clypeal edge, larger than AME; AME closer to each other than to ALB; PLE more widely spaced than ALE, slightly larger than PME; PME almost as far from each other than from PLE; MOQ wider than long, narrower anteriorly (Fig. 5). Chelicerae less hairy than those of Penestomus , pale brown; anterior margin of chelicerae with a low chitinous keel armed with 5 teeth, tooth next to basal one largest. Labium and maxillae pale grey, labium half the length of maxillae, apex white translucent. Sternum dirty grey, oval, posteriorly projected between fourth coxae. Legs greyish; only coxae III and IV white translucent, metatarsi and tarsi I and II brownish; other segments with pale translucent patches; legs clothed with long pale setae; leg formula 4123; leg measurements:

Coxae long, especially leg IV; femur of all legs slightly thicker than rest. Abdomen oval, tapering posteriorly; grey, clothed with numerous short black setae, with a pair of roundish transversal white patches centrally at widest point of abdomen, patches covered with strong white setae; ventrum unicoloured.

Epigynum as shown in Fig. 7, internal genitalia as depicted in Fig. 8.

Male Unknown.

Juvenile similar to female.

Distribution Known only from type locality.

Bionomics

An adult female was collected in August from silklined tunnels in boulders.