Pholcus hwaam sp. nov.

Figs 3, 8B

Material examined.

Holotype: South Korea • ♂; Gangwon-do, Goseong-gun, Toseong-myeon, Sinpyeong-ri, Hwaamsa Temple; 38°13.6'N, 128°28.4'E, 305 m; 21 September 2022; C.M. Jang & S.T. Kim leg.; NIBR #NUHGIV0000000002 . Paratypes: South Korea • 5♂♂ and 5♀♀ same data as for holotype; NIBR #NUHGIV00000000012-21 .

Additional material examined.

Pholcus seorakensis Seo, 2018: South Korea • 2♂♂ 3♀♀; Gangwon-do, Inje-gun, Buk-myeon, Baekdam-ro; 38°11.0'N, 128°21.4'E, 399 m (from type locality); 21 September 2022; C.M. Jang & S.T. Kim leg.

Diagnosis.

Pholcus hwaam sp. nov. is similar to P. seorakensis Seo, 2018 in the shape of the genital organ and body appearance but can be easily distinguished from the latter by the combination of the following characters: male - uncus rectangular with an angular side (Fig. 3H); procursus with a broad dorsodistal apophysis having one pointed tip and two large and small separated tips in prolateral view (numbered 1 in Fig. 3H-J) vs uncus rectangular with two angular sides; procursus with broad dorsodistal apophysis having one pointed tip and two large and small connected tips in prolateral view in P. seorakensis (numbered 1 in Fig. 4H-J; Seo 2018: 256, figs 3G-J). Female - median portion depressed postero-laterally with triangular pore plates (Fig. 3G) vs median portion undepressed with triangular pore plates in P. seorakensis (Fig. 4E-G; Seo 2018: 256, fig. 3L).

Description.

Male (holotype). Habitus as in Fig. 3A. Total length 5.59. Carapace: 1.69 long/1.86 wide. Eyes: AER 0.78, PER 0.87, ALE 0.20, AME 0.16, PLE 0.22, PME 0.20, ALE-PLE contiguous, ALE-AME 0.05, AME-AME 0.07, AME-PME 0.07, PME-PLE 0.05, PME-PME 0.31. Chelicera: 1.13 long/0.35 wide. Endite: 0.57 long/0.35 wide. Labium: 0.32 long/0.37 wide. Sternum: 0.86 long/1.24 wide. Legs: I 50.59 (13.00, 0.76, 13.03, 21.36, 2.44), II 34.77 (9.63, 0.70, 8.84, 14.37, 1.23), III 22.16 (6.47, 0.61, 5.49, 8.40, 1.19), IV 30.59 (8.78, 0.70, 7.74, 11.99, 1.38), tibia I L/d 76. Palp: 2.98 (0.60, 0.29, 0.96, -, 1.13). Abdomen: 3.90 long/1.95 wide.

Carapace pale yellowish brown, cephalic region with pale blackish brown median and marginal bands, thoracic region with pale blackish brown radial and marginal bands (Fig. 3A). Chelicera with three apophyses; blunt proximo-lateral apophysis slightly protruding diagonally upward out of chelicera, small and blunt frontal apophysis protruding forward, and thick and pointed distal apophysis slightly protruding diagonally downward (Fig. 3C, D). Legs yellowish brown, retrolateral trichobothrium on tibia I at 6% proximally, tarsus I with 30 pseudosegments, femora, tibiae, and metatarsi with one or two pale to dark blackish brown proximal and distal annuli, leg formula I-II-IV-III. Abdomen elliptical, turbid gray with a long cardiac pattern and many black irregular spots (Fig. 3A). Palp (Fig. 3H-K): trochanter with blunt and finger-like retrolatero-ventral apophysis, shorter than femur; palpal tibia with finger-shaped prolatero-ventral modification hidden by uncus; bulb pale yellowish brown, pocket-shaped; uncus dark blackish brown and square with rounded edge having fine scales, angled on one side, edge finely serrated, pseudo-appendix thick and long, claw-shaped (Fig. 3H, K); embolus thick and weakly sclerotized with some semitransparent fringed distal processes and oblique broad tip, slightly curved (Fig. 3H, K); procursus large and long, brown with blackish brown margin, small ventral knee roundly swollen and straight, two distal apophyses present, dorsodistal apophysis broad with three pointed tips (numbered 1 in Fig. 3H-J) and white ventrodistal apophysis strongly curved with a pointed tip (numbered 2 in Fig. 3H, I), one thick and long dorsal spine present (Fig. 8B).

Female (paratype). General appearance similar to male, habitus as in Fig. 3B. Total length 4.66. Carapace: 1.62 long/1.74 wide. Eyes: AER 0.74, PER 0.81, ALE 0.19, AME 0.15, PLE 0.20, PME 0.19, ALE-PLE contiguous, ALE-AME 0.06, AME-AME 0.05, AME-PME 0.08, PME-PLE 0.04, PME-PME 0.29. Chelicera: 1.04 long/0.33 wide. Endite: 0.56 long/0.32 wide. Labium: 0.30 long/0.37 wide. Sternum: 0.86 long/1.17 wide. Legs: I 37.63 (9.11, 0.71, 9.37, 15.91, 2.53), II 26.20 (6.95, 0.70, 6.55, 10.33, 1.67), III 19.27 (5.40, 0.68, 4.64, 7.26, 1.29), IV 25.42 (7.23, 0.65, 6.30, 9.69, 1.55), tibia I L/d 51. Palp: 1.56 (0.47, 0.23, 0.31, -, 0.55). Abdomen: 3.04 long/1.41 wide. Epigynum: 0.96 wide.

Legs yellowish brown, femora, tibiae, and metatarsi with one or two pale blackish brown proximal and distal annuli, leg formula I-II-IV-III. Epigynum (Fig. 3E, F): sclerotized, anterior epigynal plate strongly protruding, anterior arch with median portion slightly recurved, anterior epigynal plate and posterior epigynal plate far apart, median portion sclerotized and depressed postero-laterally; small and short knob with a blunt tip. Internal genitalia (Fig. 3G): pore plates triangular and far apart from each other.

Variation.

Tibia I in five paratype males (NIBR #NUHGIV00000000012-16): 12.01 ± 1.18 (13.14, 11.83, 12.64, 10.43, missing). Tibia I in other four paratype females (NIBR #NUHGIV00000000018-21): 8.63 ± 0.47 (8.29, 8.55, 9.32, 8.36).

Habitat.

Rock walls and under rocks in a mountainous mixed forest (Fig. 1C).

Distribution.

South Korea (Hwaamsa Temple, Gangwon-do) (Fig. 1A).

Etymology.

The specific name is a noun in apposition referring to the type locality, Hwaamsa Temple.