Eusparassus kronebergi Denis, 1958 stat. nov.

(Figure 11)

Eusparassus kronebergi Denis, 1958: 99, figs 26–28 (description of male and female; syntypes: one male, one female, examined, lectotype and paralectotype designated).

Sparassus walckenaeri – Levy 1989: 134 (listed Sparassus kronebergi as synonym of S. walckenaeri).

Type material

Lectotype: male, AFGHANISTAN: Seistan, Faizabad, 14 February 1949, K. Paludan leg. (ZMUC 5671) ; Paralectotype: 1 female, Afghanistan: Farah Province: Farah, (station 87), 18 June 1948, K. Paludan leg. (ZMUC 5675) .

Other material examined

2 ♂♂, INDIA: Rajasthan, Suratgarh, D. Hummel leg. (NRM) .

Diagnosis

Males of E. kronebergi can be distinguished from other congeners by vRTA (compared to that of E. walckenaeri) not well developed (Figure 11C,D) and embolus tip directed retrolateralo-distad, in ventral view (Figure 11E); in contrast to E. walckenaeri, epigyne with MS as wide as long, and to E. doriae stat. nov., EF longer than wide (Figure 11F); vulva with a distinct crest laterally (Figure 11G).

Redescription

Male (n = 3) [lectotype first]. Males medium-sized. Total length: 12.8–18.2, prosoma length 5.6–8.9, prosoma width 4.8–7.6, anterior width of prosoma 2.6–3.7, opisthosoma length 7.2–9.3, opisthosoma width 4.5–5.5. Eyes (lectotype): AME 0.37, ALE 0.33, PME 0.32, PLE 0.33; eye interdistances: AME–AME 0.19, AME–ALE 0.07, PME–PME 0.40, PME–PLE 0.48, AME–PME 0.35, ALE–PLE 0.22, clypeus height at AME 0.23, clypeus height at ALE 0.38.

Chelicerae with two anterior and four posterior teeth; Cheliceral furrow without or with a single denticle, distal end of cheliceral basal segment with a single bristle (Figure 11B); Leg formula: 2 1 4 3. Measurements of palp and legs: Palp 10.5 [3.5, 1.6, 2.0, 3.4], I 26.6 [7.4, 2.9, 6.7, 7.3, 2.3], II 28.0 [7.9, 3.0, 7.5, 7.2, 2.4], III 23.4 [6.8, 2.6, 6.0, 6.1, 1.9], IV 26.2 [7.8, 2.5, 7.0, 7.5, 2.4].

Spination. Palp 131, 000 / 001, 1111; Legs: Femur I–III 323, IV 322; Patella I–IV 001 / 101; Tibia I–IV 2024 / 2224; Metatarsus I–III 2024, IV 3034.

Palp. As in diagnosis, with cymbium longer than tibia.

Female (n = 1) paralectotype. Prosoma length 4.8, prosoma width 3.9, anterior width of prosoma 2.6, opisthosoma length, opisthosoma width. Eyes: AME 0.34, ALE 0.30, PME 0.28, PLE 0.32, AME-AME 0.20; eye interdistances: AME–ALE 0.05, PME– PME 0.37, PME–PLE 0.31, AME–PME 0.26, ALE–PLE 0.16, clypeus height at AME 0.18, clypeus height at ALE 0.28.

Chelicerae with two anterior and three or four posterior teeth; cheliceral furrow without denticles. Leg formula: 24=13 (leg IV and I are the same size). Measurements of palp and legs: Palp 6.6 [1.8, 0.9, 1.3, 2.6], I 18.6 [5.2, 2.2, 4.8, 4.7, 1.7], II 20.1 [5.9, 2.5, 5.3, 4.9, 1.8], III 16.5 [4.8, 2.1, 4.2, 3.9, 1.5], IV 18.7 [5.6, 2.1, 4.9, 4.5, 1.6].

Spination. Palp 131, 001, 1111, 1013; Legs: Femur I–III 323, IV 321; Patella I–IV 000; Tibia I 1024, II 2024, III (1014)2024, IV 2024; Metatarsus I–III 2024, IV 3036.

Epigyne / vulva. As in diagnosis with EF longer than wide, EFB present (Figure 11F); vulva has two separate glandular parts located near a ridge laterally (Figure 11G).

Colouration [in ethanol]. Pale brown, dorsal opisthosoma with a patch and series of small chevron-like patterns, ventral opisthosoma pale.

Remarks

Morphological evidence allows this species to be withdrawn from the synonymy (Levy 1989) with E. walckenaeri . Syntypes were collected in Afghanistan during “the 3rd Danish Expedition to Central Asia”. These are one male and one female collected allopatrically. There is the possibility that they are not conspecific. Consequently, to designate a unique bearer of the name of the nominal species (Article 74), we select the male to be the lectotype of E. kronebergi stat. nov. to fix the status of the species. Two other males sampled from Rajastan were found to be conspecific. This is the first record of the species from India

Known geographical distribution

Western Afghanistan; India: Rajastan (new record).