Ephippiochthonius hiberus ( Beier, 1930 ) Beier, 1930

Zaragoza, Juan A., 2017, Revision of the Ephippiochthonius complex in the Iberian Peninsula, Balearic Islands and Macaronesia, with proposed changes to the status of the Chthonius subgenera (Pseudoscorpiones, Chthoniidae), Zootaxa 4246 (1), pp. 1-221 : 83-85

Ephippiochthonius hiberus ( Beier, 1930) , n. comb.

( Figs 149–151 )

Chthonius (Ephippiochthonius) hiberus Beier 1930: 324 –325, fig. 2. Chthonius (E.) aff. hiberus Beier : Mahnert 1977: 65 –66.

Chthonius (Ephippiochthonius) hiberus: Zaragoza 2007: 16 –17.

Type locality. Spain, Castilla-La Mancha, Guadalajara province , Tamajón, Sima de la Raya (41°01′43″N, 03°13′46″W; 1085 m a.s.l.).

Distribution. Spain: Castilla-La Mancha.

Diagnosis (♀). A moderately large, hypogean Ephippiochthonius species of the tetrachelatus- group. Movable cheliceral finger with isolated subapical tooth (di) and spinneret very low in female, unknown for male; no eyes or eye-spots, without preocular microsetae, posterior margin of carapace with 2 macrosetae; chelal hand weakly depressed at level of ib / isb, with long and low hump distad of ib / isb and moderate slope between trichobothria ib / isb and eb; fixed chelal finger with 26 teeth; movable chelal finger with 13 teeth, without marginal lamina; pedipalpal femur (♀) 7.3 times longer than broad, length (♀) 1.02 mm; chela (♀) 5.3 times longer than deep, length (♀) 1.33 mm; ratio movable chelal finger/chelal hand (♀) 1.5; all chelal lyrifissure patterns present with their standard complements.

Type material examined. ♀ holotype ( MNCN), Spain, Castilla-La Mancha, Guadalajara province, Tamajón, Sima de la Raya (41°01′43″N, 03°13′46″W; 1085 m a.s.l.), leg. C. Bolivar.

Description (♀; ♂ unknown). Moderately large, hypogean species. Integument depigmented, troglomorphic.

Carapace distinctly longer than broad and posteriorly constricted; medial part of anterior margin weakly prominent, without a well-defined epistome, and strongly dentate; without eyes or eye-spots. Chaetotaxy: 18 macrosetae and without preocular microsetae, formula 4:6:4:2:2.

Cheliceral fixed finger with 9 teeth decreasing in size proximally, two distal teeth distinctly larger than others. Movable finger with an isolated subapical tooth (di), prominent and pointed on one chelicera and rounded and low on the other ( Figs 149, 150 ), with 6 teeth decreasing in size proximally, the distal tooth larger than others; spinneret very low in female, unknown for male.

Pedipalpal coxa with 5 setae (including 2 on manducatory process), distal marginal seta of disk 0.12 mm long; coxa I 3 + 3 marginal microsetae, distal marginal seta 0.08 mm long; II 4 + 17 bipinnate coxal spines, III 5 + 6 bipinnate coxal spines and IV 6; intercoxal tubercle bisetose. Chaetotaxy of tergites I–VIII: 4:4:4:4:6:6:6:6.

Chela ( Fig. 151 ), with hand weakly depressed at level of ib / isb, with long and low hump distad of ib / isb and moderate slope between trichobothria ib / isb and eb; dorsal-antiaxial surface of the chelal hand between the hump and trichobothria eb/esb flattened, limited by a marked edge; ventral intercondylar bow-like protuberance (ip) present; width longer than depth; chaetotaxy 4:5:3, seta ph3 lacking, setae ih1, ih3 and ih4 approximately level with trichobothria ib / isb; distal end of hand and bases of chelal fingers with sclerotized condylar complex. Fixed finger with 26 teeth, most pointed, slightly basally reclined, and all with dental canals, 8 proximal teeth progressively decreasing in size, the 3 most proximal teeth rounded, 2 distalmost teeth small, dental row reaching up to distad of trichobothrium b; tip of finger with an accessory tooth (td) on antiaxial face; one pair of long antiaxial sensory setae (as) at the finger base, distance between them equal to depth of fixed finger at base; 4 teeth at level of est / it occupying 0.1 mm, distance between successive apices 0.030 mm. Movable finger with 13 teeth, up to well distad of trichobothrium sb are pointed, slightly basally reclined, and well developed (except the most proximal, that is low and rounded), all with dental canals; proximally 4–6 vestigial teeth decreasing in size and becoming flattened, without dental canals, dental row reaching up to sensilla pc, being distinctly shorter than the fixed finger dental row; basal apodeme long and apically indented; coupled sensilla pc between sb and b, distinctly closet to b. Trichobothria as in Fig. 151 ; trichobothrium ist level to esb and distinctly proximad of lyrifissure fb; distance between ib / isb and esb 1.1 times longer than between ib / isb and the base of the hand; distance between st and sb 2.0 times longer than that between sb and b. All chelal lyrifissure patterns present with their standard complements.

Measurements and ratios. Female holotype: Body 2.20. Pedipalp: femur 1.02/0.14 (7.3), patella 0.42/0.18 (2.4), chela 1.33/0.25 (5.3), hand 0.53 (2.2), movable finger 0.77; ratio movable finger/hand 1.5, femur/movable finger 1.3, chela/femur 1.3.

Remarks. Ephippiochthonius hiberus and E. gonzalezi n. sp. are the only known species of the tetrachelatus - group without microsetae in the posterior row of the carapace and that have an isolated subapical tooth (di) on the movable cheliceral finger. Comparison between these closely related species is made in the key and in the remarks under E. gonzalezi n. sp. The above description incorporates in part that of Mahnert (1989). The record by Mahnert (1977) of Chthonius (E.) aff. hiberus from Cova del Janet, Llaberia, Tarragona province, Spain, corresponds to E. aurouxi n. sp.

Figures

FIGURES 149 – 151. Ephippiochthonius hiberus (Beier, 1930) n. comb., female holotype. 149, fingers of right chelicera, partial view; 150, movable finger of left chelicera, partial view; 151, right chela, antiaxial view.