Genus Fuchiba gen. n.

Etymology: The genus name is an arbitrary combination of letters. Gender masculine.

Type species: Fuchiba aquilonia sp. n.

Diagnosis: Separated from other trachelines by the robust body, lack of any cusps or spines on legs, widely spaced eyes, high and finely granulate carapace with a shallow depression immediately anterior to the fovea, and by the genitalic structures: males have a short coiled embolus distally on the tegulum and a simple single RTA; females have copulatory openings situated laterally in sclerotised posterior circular depressions.

Description: Small spiders, 2.43–4.70 mm long; carapace yellow-brown, orange, redbrown or dark brown, abdomen pale grey with dark grey dorsal chevron marking (Figs 1–3, 5–14); carapace surface finely granulate (Figs 15, 16); AER procurved, clypeus height larger than AME diameter; AME slightly smaller than ALE, or eyes subequal; AME closer to ALE than to each other; PER strongly recurved (Fig. 16); PME slightly larger than PLE, or eyes subequal; PME closer to each other than to PLE; chilum single, triangular, tapering distally, sometimes with distal notch; cheliceral promargin and retromargin with three teeth each, retromarginal teeth often on single base, otherwise close together (Fig. 17); labium trapezoidal; endites straight laterally with distinct serrula (Fig. 18), anterolateral spur present in male F. montana sp. n. and F. venteri sp. n.; carapace broadly oval, widest at midpoint, eye region wide; carapace with slight depression anterior to fovea, posterior margin slightly concave; pleural bars isolated; sternum shield-shaped; precoxal triangles present; intercoxal sclerites present between coxae I and II, II and III, and III and IV; legs I and II more strongly built than legs III and IV; legs without spines or ventral cusps, metatarsi and tarsi scopulate (Figs 19, 20), with paired tarsal claws and weakly developed claw tufts (Fig. 21); metatarsi III and IV with terminal preening brush; leg formula 1423 in ♂, 4123 in ♀; abdomen oval, tapering posteriorly; dorsal scutum complete in ♂, absent in ♀; dorsal sigilla present; venter with paired tiny sclerites running from epigastric fold to spinnerets; inframamillary sclerite absent; male palp with single subtriangular RTA; tegulum oval, with short distal embolus forming single coil (Figs 22, 23); female epigyne with copulatory openings situated laterally in paired circular ridges; vulva with short entrance ducts, directed anteriorly; ST II large, oval, anteromedially situated, ST I small, laterally situated.

Species included: F. aquilonia, F. capensis, F. montana, F. similis, F. tortilis and F. venteri (all new).

Key to species of the genus Fuchiba gen. n.

1 Males (♂ of F. similis sp. n. and F. tortilis sp. n. unknown) ................................. 2

– Females ................................................................................................................. 5

2 Embolus forming narrow coil with tip directed towards and ending close to cymbial tip (Fig. 45) ................................................................................... F. venteri sp. n.

– Embolus forming broad coil in transverse plane, tip closer to distal end of tegulum than to cymbial tip (Fig. 26) ................................................................................. 3

3 Embolus forming complete coil through 360°, tip situated close to prolateral base and directed towards cymbial tip (Fig. 36) ................................ F. montana sp. n.

– Embolus only curving 180° to 270° from prolateral base (Figs 26, 32)............... 4

4 Embolus coiled through 180°, tip directed slightly towards cymbial tip (Fig. 26) .................................................................................................. F. aquilonia sp. n.

– Embolus coiled through approx. 270°, tip slanting slightly towards base of tegulum (Fig. 32) ...................................................................................... F. capensis sp. n.

5 Epigyne with distinctive paired posterior circular ridges (Fig. 30), entrance ducts not coiled (Fig. 31) ............................................................................................... 6

– Epigyne with subrectangular ridges with curved margins, entrance ducts distinctly coiled (Figs 43, 44) ........................................................................ F. tortilis sp. n.

6 Epigyne with corrugated ridges anteriorly, ST II small and round (Fig. 41).......... ....................................................................................................... F. similis sp. n.

– Epigyne without corrugated ridges anteriorly, ST II usually larger and oval ....... 7

7 Copulatory openings situated anterolaterally in circular ridges; ST II large, length from anterior margin to posterior bend much greater than length of circular ridges (Fig. 38) ..................................................................................... F. montana sp. n.

– Copulatory openings situated mediolaterally or posteriorly in circular ridges; ST II smaller, length from anterior margin to posterior bend nearly equal to or smaller than length of circular ridges (e.g. Fig. 30) .......................................................... 8

8 Base of ST II initially bending posteromedially following entrance ducts before bending anteriorly into oval receptacle; ST II orientated parallel to body axis (Fig. 30) ............................................................................................. F. aquilonia sp. n.

– Base of ST II initially bending anteromedially following entrance ducts before bending anterolaterally into oval receptacle; ST II orientated obliquely relative to body axis (Figs 34, 47) ......................................................................................... 9

9 Copulatory openings broad (Fig. 47), lateral receptacles of ST I distinctly separated (Fig. 48); carapace yellow-brown ................................................. F. venteri sp. n.

– Copulatory openings narrow (Fig. 34), lateral receptacles of ST I close together (Fig. 35); carapace yellow-brown to red-brown ......................... F. capensis sp. n.