Evippa praelongipes (O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1871)

Figs 3B, 4D, 5D, 6D, 7D, 8D, 10D, 11D, 14A

Lycosa praelongipes O. Pickard-Cambridge, 1871: 822, pl. 50, fig. 3 (♂, Egypt).

Pardosa praelongipes – Schmidt 1895: 476 (♀, Turkmenistan. Possibly misidentified Evippa onager).

Evippa praelongipes – Simon 1890: 112, 123 (Yemen); 1897: 290 (“Arabia”). — Roewer 1955 (North Africa, Transcaspia, India, Arabia, Sinai, Tripoli); 1959: 182, fig. 93 (♀, North Africa, Transcaspia, India. Misidentified?). — Bonnet 1956: 1866 (Tripoli, Arabia, Russia). — Denis 1966: 127, fig. 44 (sub ♀, Lybia). — Alderweireldt 1991: 369, fig. 5.1–5 (♂ ♀, Egypt, Saudi Arabia). — Alderweireldt & Jocqué 2017: 10 (Saudi Arabia, Yemen).

non Evippa praelongipes – Tikader & Malhotra 1980: 311, fig. 135–137 (♀, India, Pakistan).

Diagnosis

Recognized by a combination of genital characters. Male palp: tegular apophysis parallel to cymbium, with small, prolaterally oriented subapical process. Short terminal apophysis positioned ventrad to tegular apophysis (Figs 6D, 7D, 8D). Epigyne: straight atria with indistinct retrolateral margins. Septum with smooth margins, without protrusions (compare with similar E. amitaii sp. nov. palp, with a small protrusion) (Fig. 10D, 11D) It is the only Evippa in Israel to have a septum without protrusions.

Material examined

ISRAEL – Dead Sea Area • 1 ♀; Nahal ’Ammi’az; 31.073° N, 35.342° E; 12 Apr. 2018; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16554 • 1 ♀ with juv.; same collection data as for preceding; HUJ INV-Ar 16555 • 3 ♂♂; same collection data as for preceding; HUJ INV-Ar 16556 to 16558 • 2 ♀♀; Nahal ’Azgad; 31.067° N, 35.335° E; 12 Apr. 2018; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16559–16560 • 1 ♀; Sedom; [31.01° N, 35.35° E]; 21 Apr. 1954; A. Shulov leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16518 . – ’ Arava Valley • 1 ♂; ’ Avrona; [29.67° N, 35.00° E]; 2–8 Sep. 2016; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16522 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; 7 Sep. 2016; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16521 • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; 11 Sep. 2017; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16534 to 16535 • 1 ♀; Elat; [29.57° N, 34.96° E]; 15 Apr. 1987; V. and B. Roth leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16530 • 3 ♀♀; same collection data as for preceding; 18 Aug. 2016; A. Weinstein leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16519 to 16520, 16044 • 1 ♀; ’ En Yotvata; [29.879° N, 35.044° E]; 25 Jan. 1958; A. Shulov leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16517 • 1 ♂; Hazeva; 30.7139° N, 35.1964° E; 14 Jun. 2009; HUJ INV-Ar 16531 • 1 ♂; Hazeva; 30.8121° N, 35.2804° E; 2 Jul. 2010; HUJ INV-Ar 16532 • 1 ♂; Hazeva; 30.7129° N, 35.1964° E; 20 ul. 2010; HUJ INV-Ar 16533 • 1 ♂; Nahal Amazyahu N of ’Iddan; [30.85° N, 35.29° E]; 15 Sep. 1988; B. Shalmon leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16043 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; 16 Sep. 1988; B. Shalmon leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16023 • 1 ♂; Nahal Amazyahu N of ’Iddan; [30.85° N, 35.29° E]; 17 Sep. 1988; J. Koach leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16524 • 1 ♀; Nahal Amazyahu; [30.85° N, 35.29° E]; 24 Sep. 1988; A. Weinstein leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16529 . – Negev • 1 ♀; Nahal Zevira; [30.64° N, 35.20° E]; 24 Feb. 2017; E. Gavish-Regev leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16560 • 1 ♀; Biq’at ’Uvda (’ Uvda valley), Har Shahrur; [29.980° N, 34.953° E]; 13 Mar. 2018; E. Gavish-Regev leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16562 • 1 ♂; Biq’at ’Uvda (’ Uvda valley), Kasuy Sands; [29.964° N, 34.979° E]; 13 Mar. 2018; E. Gavish-Regev leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16563 • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; Biq’at ’Uvda (’ Uvda valley), Nahal Hiyyon; [29.998° N, 34.973° E]; 13 Mar. 2018; E. Gavish-Regev leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16564 to 16565 • 1 ♀; Shizzafon; [30.105° N, 35.002° E]; 24 Jul. 2014; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16511 • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; Makhtesh Ramon; [30.59° N, 34.83° E]; 28 Mar. 1993; Y. Lubin leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16527 to 16528 • 3 ♂♂; same collection data as for preceding; 21 Feb. 1994; Y. Lubin leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16041, 16566 to 16567 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; 21 Feb. 1994; Y. Lubin leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16042 • 1 ♂, 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; 8 Nov. 1992; Y. Lubin leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16525 to 16526 • 1 ♀; Nahal Shizzafon; [30.042° N, 35.021° E]; 30 Jul. 2019; I. Armiach Steinpress leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 20317 .

EGYPT – Sinai • ♀; Abu–sela; 13 Aug. 1968; G. Tsabar leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16512 • ♀; Mt. Catherine; [28.50° N, 33.95° E]; 16 Aug. 1968; G. Tsabar leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16515 • ♀; Saint Catherine; [28.50° N, 33.95° E]; 15 Jul. 1968; A. Shulov leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16513 • 2 ♂♂; Wadi Nequra; 21 Jan. 1969; S. Reichenstein leg.; HUJ INV-Ar 16514, 16516 .

Natural history

Inhabits hyper-arid deserts. Adults were collected January through April, June through September and in November (Table 3). Egg - sacs were observed in April and September. We suggest that E. praelongipes is active and reproducing throughout the year. Specimens were collected at night, mostly in dry stream beds, under and near shrubs (Fig. 15A).

Distribution

Lybia to Saudi Arabia (Bonnet 1956; Alderweireldt & Jocqué 2017), Israel. Reports from Turkmenistan (Schmidt 1895), Pakistan and India (Tikader & Malhotra 1980) might be due to misidentification.

Records

Israel: (Fig. 16) Dead Sea area (Sedom); ‘Arava Valley (Elat, ‘En Yotvata, ‘Avrona, Nahal Amazyahu); Negev (Makhtesh Ramon, Shizzafon). Egypt: Sinai (Mt. Catherine, Wadi Nequra).