Loxosceles coquimbo Gertsch, 1967

Figs 2, 8B, 10

Loxosceles coquimbo Gertsch, 1967: 158, pl. 8, fig. 5

( female holotype from Chile, IV Región de Coquimbo, Coquimbo, Elqui, Playa Blanca, 30.2218 S, 71.40602 W, deposited in AMNH, not examined).

Note

Males were not collected with females; the only male comes from a locality 83 km to the north of the nearest collected female. They are here associated based on the morphology of genital and copulatory organs, which are comparatively simple in the male and the female, and fitting the diagnosis of the laeta species-group, as well as on the leg formula (4213). Despite having visited the type locality, we could not obtain any topotypes.

Diagnosis

Loxosceles coquimbo differs from other Chilean species by the male palp with tegulum globose and embolus short and sinuous at tip (Fig. 2A–B). Females can be recognised by the inner and outer spermathecae with nearly the same size (Fig. 8B; Gertsch 1967: pl. 8, fig. 5).

Material examined

CHILE. IV Región de Coquimbo: Coquimbo, 2 ♀♀, Coquimbo, Lomas de Peñuelas, 29.9333 S, 71.3 W, 8 m a.s.l., under rocks and under dead cactus, 6 Jan. 1985, N.I. Platnick and O. Francke leg. (AMNH); Elqui, 1 ♂, La Higuera, Los Choros, 29.2469 S, 71.4617 W, 6–9 Jul. 2007, J. Pizarro leg. (LEULS).

Description

Male (Los Choros, Elqui, Chile, LEULS)

Specimen discoloured, but with carapace orange anteriorly and laterally, yellowish posteriorly. Chelicerae red brown. Endites, labium and sternum yellow. Legs yellowish. Palp yellow, except tibiae and cymbium orange. Opisthosoma uniformly grey. Total length 7.3. Caparace 3.3 long, 2.7 wide. Clypeus 0.35 high. Eye diameters: ALE 0.14, PME 0.16, PLE 0.16. Sternum 1.8 long, 1.4 wide. Leg I: femur 6.6, patella 1.1, tibia 7.5, metatarsus 7.5, tarsus 1.6, total 23.1. II: 7.5, 1.2, 8.6, 9.1, 1.8, 25.2. III: 6.2, 1.1, 6.1, 7.2, 1.3, 21.9. IV: 7.3, 1.1, 7.0, 8.6, 1.6, 25.7. Leg formula 4213. Palpal femur 3.1 long, 0.4 wide. Palpal tibia 2.1 long, 0.5 wide. Palp with a short cymbium, a round tegular base with half-length of cymbium, and a straight and short embolus with a truncated tip (Fig. 2).

Female

Described by Gertsch (1967). Palpal tarsus narrow.

Variation

Female (n = 2): total length 6.3–7.2, carapace 2.4–3.3 long, femur I 3.6–3.8 long. Palpal tarsus 1.2–1.3 long.

Distribution

Known from the Coquimbo Region in Chile only (Fig. 10).