Eusparassus maynardi (Pocock, 1901) comb. nov. stat. nov.

(Figure 21)

Sparassus maynardi Pocock, 1901: 490 (description of female and male; syntypes, one adult and two subadult females, three subadult males, lectotype adult female and paralectotypes immatures here designated) [see note below].

Olios xerxes – Gravely 1931: 240–241 (in part, misidentification and unjustified synonymy); Sethi and Tikader 1988: 35 (in part, misidentification).

Type material

Lectotype: female, PAKISTAN: Baluchistan Province, Baluchistan, F.W. Townsend leg. (NHM 1900.3.13.5.6); Paralectotypes: 2 subadult males and 1 immature female: 1 subadult male, Baluchistan Province, Baluchistan, F.W. Townsend leg. (NHM 1900.3.13.5.6); 1 subadult male, 1 subadult female, Sindh Province, Jacobabad, H.M. Phipson leg. (NHM 1899.4.10.24.29) .

Note. The type material of E. maynardi consists of one adult female and several immatures. Consequently, to maintain species identity, the adult female is designated here as lectotype.

Additional material examined

PAKISTAN: 2♀♀, Sindh Province: with label “Jacobabad, H.M. Phipson / Sparassus pallescens Pocock Type ”, Jacobabad, H.M. Phipson leg. (NHM 1899.7.10.27. 9) ; 1♀, Azad Kashmir: Kedsch, E. Zugmayer leg. (ZSM A20110052) .

Diagnosis

The combination of characters including absence of EFB, long slender epigyne and not fused AMLL (Figure 21A,E) distinguishes E. maynardi comb. nov. from remaining congeners. This species lacks any black marking on venter of opisthosoma (unlike E. xerxes comb. nov.).

Redescription

Female (n = 4) [lectotype is the largest female]. Total length: 15.7–20.4, prosoma length 7.0–9.2, prosoma width 6.0–7.6, anterior width of prosoma 3.4–4.3, opisthosoma length 8.7–11.2, opisthosoma width 5.0–8.1. Eyes of lectotype: AME 0.54, ALE 0.47, PME 0.44, PLE 0.45; eye interdistances: AME–AME 0.27, AME–ALE 0.06, PME–PME 0.46, PME–PLE 0.53, AME–PME 0.35, ALE–PLE 0.26, clypeus height at AME 0.48, clypeus height at ALE 0.58.

Chelicera with two anterior and four to six posterior teeth; cheliceral furrow without denticles; one bristle at distal end of cheliceral basal segment (Figure 21D). Leg formula: 2 4 1 3. Measurements of palp and legs (lectotype): Palp 11.6 [3.5, 1.7, 2.3, 4.1], I 37.3 [10.4, 4.5, 10.1, 10.0, 2.3], II 40.4 [11.6, 4.6, 11.1, 10.5, 2.6], III 34.4 [10.4, 4.2, 9.3, 8.3, 2.2], IV 39.1 [11.1, 4.0, 10.5, 10.8, 2.7].

Spination. Palp 131, 001, 1111, 1013; Legs: Femur I–III 323, IV 322(3); Patella I–IV 000; Tibia I–IV 2024; Metatarsus I–III 2024, IV 3034.

Epigyne / vulva. As in diagnosis, with EF longer than wide, MS partially sclerotized (Figure 21A,E); longitudinal ridge at lateral side of vulva, glandular pores located on a semispherical process (Figure 21B).

Male. Unknown

Colouration [in ethanol]. Yellowish brown with irregular darker pattern on prosoma, ventral opisthosoma without marking.

Remarks

Additional conspecific females have been found close to the type locality in Baluchistan. In NHM there were two females from Jacobabad, Pakistan labelled by Pocock under name “ Sparassus pallescens ”. The name has never been published and looks to be a provisional name by Pocock. We found these females conspecific with E. maynardi comb. nov. It seems that Gravely (1931) considered generic diagnostic characters of the genus Eusparassus to synonymize this species (as well as E. pearsoni comb. nov.) with E. xerxes comb. nov. He stated that he failed to distinguish E. maynardi “vulva” (=epigyne) from those of the latter species.

Known geographical distribution

Pakistan: Baluchistan, Sindh and Azad Kashmir Provinces.