KEY TO SPECIES OF LINOTHELE KARSCH, 1879 (FEMALES)

1. Teeth on paired claws of posterior leg tarsi reduced and appendages elongated, see Goloboff (1994); Cuevas de Jumandi, Napo, Ecuador ...................................................................................... L. cavicola Goloboff, 1994

— Teeth on paired claws not reduced and appendages not elongated; not from Cuevas de Jumandi ................ 2

2. Scopula divided (Fig. 5A, B) ....................................................................................................................... 3

— Scopula undivided (Fig. 5C, D) ................................................................................................................ 18

3. Apical segment of the PLS flexible (Figs 6E; 12A) ....................................................................................... 4

— Apical segment of the PLS rigid (Figs 7E; 15E; 16C) .................................................................................. 6

4. Maxillary cuspules absent (Fig. 12B) .............................................................. L. paulistana (Mello-Leitão, 1924)

— Maxillary cuspules present (Fig. 6G) ........................................................................................................... 5

5. Spermatheca with long, v-shaped stalks bearing several distal vesicles; see Fig. 6H, I ...................................... ............................................................................................................................. L. curvitarsis Karsch, 1879

— Spermatheca not v-shaped and without lateral lobes, or vesicles; see Paz & Raven (1990: fig. 11) ................... ............................................................................................................................... L. sericata (Karsch, 1879)

6. Patterns absent from opisthosoma, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: fig. 30); spermatheca with elongated and apically tapering stalks, bearing few elongated vesicles medially; see Fig. 10B, C, Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 32-33) .... 7

— Opisthosoma with dorsal pattern ............................................................................................................... 8

7. Carapace covered with yellowish setae ............................................... L. pukachumpi Dupérré & Tapia, 2015

— Carapace without yellowish setae .................................................................... L. longicauda (Ausserer, 1871)

8. Opisthosoma with dorsal pattern consisting only of chevrons, see Schiapelli & Gerschman (1945: pl. 4) .... 9

— Opisthosoma with mid-dorsal pattern consisting of longitudinal lines, or spots interconnected to lines, see Fig. 17F, G, I, K, M and Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 23; 34; 37; 41) ...................................................... 11

9. Ventral pattern present on opisthosoma; Minas Gerais, Brazil ....................... L. cristata (Mello-Leitão, 1945)

— Ventral pattern absent from opisthosoma; Venezuela, or Peru .................................................................... 10

10. Leg tarsi pseudo-segmented; spermatheca stalks low with few vesicles medially, see Figure 14A; Venezuela ..... ....................................................................................................................................................................... L. sexfasciata (Schiapelli & Gerschman, 1945)

— Leg tarsi with only few medial cracks; Peru .............................................. L. monticolens (Chamberlin, 1916)

11. Preening-combs present (Fig. 11A, B) ....................................................................................................... 12

— Preening-combs absent (Fig. 10A) ............................................................................................................. 13

12. Spermatheca with short stalks bearing only short vesicles, see Figure 11C, D; Andes ...................................... ........................................................................................................................ L. macrothelifera Strand, 1908

— Spermatheca with long stalks, bearing a long vesicle, see Figure 15G; eastern of the Andes .... L. spinosa n. sp.

13. Appendages with distinct maculae (Fig. 13B) ............................................................................................ 14

— Appendages more or less unicolour ........................................................................................................... 16

14. Maxillary cuspules absent and sternum with distinct pattern (Fig. 13A); Bahamas ...... L. septentrionalis n. sp.

— Maxillary cuspules present; sternum unicolour; Colombia, or Ecuador ..................................................... 15

15. Leg tarsi flexible; ventral opisthosoma without distinct pattern; Norte de Santander, Colombia ..................... ................................................................................................................. L. melloleitaoi (Mello-Leitão, 1941)

— Leg tarsi not flexible and weakly pseudosegmented; ventral opisthosoma with distinct pattern, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: fig. 47); Santo Domingo de Las Tsáchilas, Ecuador ................. L. quori Dupérré & Tapia, 2015

16. Spermathecae stalks closely positioned, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 39-40) ............................................ .................................................................................................................. L. tsachilas Dupérré & Tapia, 2015

— Spermathecae stalks widely separated, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 26-27, 36) .................................... 17

17. Opisthosoma brown with black median band, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: fig. 34); spermathecae see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: fig. 36) ..................................................................................... L. zaia Dupérré & Tapia, 2015

— Opisthosoma with mid-dorsal golden band, see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 23); spermathecae see Dupérré & Tapia (2015: figs 26-27)...................................................................... L. yanachanka Dupérré & Tapia, 2015

18. Clypeus wide (Fig. 8D); dorsal pattern on opisthosoma consisting of several dots forming incomplete chevrons and ventral pattern on opisthosoma present and distinct (Figs 18D, E; 19G); spermatheca with long, tubeshaped stalks bearing few vesicles distally, see Fig. 8B, C; Paramó regions of Ecuador ..................................... ............................................................................................................................... L. gaujoni (Simon, 1889)

— Clypeus narrow, see Figure 7H; dorsal pattern on opisthosoma consisting of complete chevrons (Fig. 18B), or absent; ventral pattern on opisthosoma absent, or indistinct (Fig. 18C); spermatheca stalks shorter and without vesicles only distally; Peru, or Brazil ........................................................................................................... 19

19. More than 30 maxillary cuspules, see Figure 7F; dorsal pattern on opisthosoma consisting of complete chevrons (Figs 16A, B; 17J); spermatheca with single retrolateral lobe, see Fig. 7G ........ L. fallax (Mello-Leitão, 1926)

— Less than 15 maxillary cuspules, see Figure 16A; patterns absent from opisthosoma; spermatheca with several vesicles and lobe, see Figure 16D ........................................................................................ L. uniformis n. sp.