Hortipes rothorum, BOSSELAERS & JOCQUÉ, 2000

BOSSELAERS, JAN & JOCQUÉ, RUDY, 2000, Hortipes, A Huge Genus Of Tiny Afrotropical Spiders (Araneae, Liocranidae), Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History 2000 (256), pp. 4-4 : 4-

Hortipes rothorum , new species Figure 17c, d ; Map 4

TYPES: Male holotype: dense indigenous forest, elev. 500 m, Mhlatuzana River, Jackson’s Fall, Kwazulu­Natal, South Africa S29°48', E30°45' (18 December 1990; V. and B. Roth) ( CAS) .

ETYMOLOGY: This species is named in hon­ or of Vince and Barbara Roth, who collected the type specimen.

DIAGNOSIS: Males of H. rothorum are recognized by the long RTA pointing downward with procurved tip in combination with the peculiarly curved MA.

MALE: Measurements. Total length 1.40; carapace 0.73 long, 0.62 wide; length of fe: I 0.62, II 0.68, III 0.57, IV 0.86. Leg spination. Fe: I rv 2; IV plt 0 rlt 0; ti: I, II vsp 5; mt: III plt 0 vt 0 rlt 0; IV plt 0 vt 1 rlt 0. Coloration. Carapace pale brown, legs and chelicerae brownish white, sternum offwhite. Abdomen very pale apricot, no pattern, covered with thin, pointed grey setae. Palp. Tibia with fairly long RTA extended downward, with procurved tip and small, pointed, frontal prong; cymbium fairly elongate, without retrolateral concavity or series of long curved setae; sperm duct fairly nar­ of tegulum, with fairly narrow, transverse base, sharply curved forward, then backward, ending in S­shaped turn; embolus originating on posterior part of tegulum, whiplike, looped over slightly less than 360° (fig. 17c, d).

FEMALE: Unknown.

DISTRIBUTION: Known only from the type locality.

Figures

Map 4. Distribution of Hortipes species in South Africa. Hortipes aelurisiepae V, H. atalante h, H. coccinatus •, H. contubernalis O, H. griswoldi., H. hyakutake, H. irimus, H. licnophorus D, H. luytenae Δ, H. merwei *, H. mesembrinus, H. rothorum v, H. schoemanae n, and H. wimmertensi ^.

Fig. 17. a, b. Hortipes hyakutake, new species, male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. c, d. Hortipes rothorum, new species, male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. e, f. Hortipes griswoldi, new species, male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. g. Hortipes aelurisiepae, new species, epigyne. h. Hortipes penthesileia, new species, epigyne. i–l. Hortipes oronesiotes, new species. i, j. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. k. Epigyne. l. Male palpal ti, dorsal view. m–o. Hortipes zombaensis, new species. m. Epigyne. n, o. Male left palp, ventral and retrolateral views. Scale lines: 0.25 mm.