Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941

Huber, Bernhard A., 2022, Revisions of Holocnemus and Crossopriza: the spotted-leg clade of Smeringopinae (Araneae, Pholcidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 795 (1), pp. 1-241 : 103-104

Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941

Figs 352 , 354–372

Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941: 28 , fig. 11a–l.

Diagnosis

Distinguished from known congeners by details of male palp ( Figs 357–361 ; procursus tip with fringed transparent process; shape of distal bulbal sclerite); from the only geographically close congener ( C. illizi sp. nov.) also by male chelicerae without modified hairs on frontal face ( Fig. 362 ); from many congeners also by female genitalia ( Figs 364–372 ; epigynum with elongate pockets; roundish pore plates far apart; similar to C. illizi ).

Type material

Lectotype (examined; designated herein) BURKINA FASO • ♂; Ouagadougou ; 12.36° N, 1.52° W; Sep. 1937; J. Millot leg.; MNHN Ar 10520.

Paralectotypes (examined) BURKINA FASO • 1 ♀; same collection data as for lectotype; MNHN Ar 10520 .

MALI • 3 ♀♀, 2 juvs; Bamako ; 12.63° N, 7.99° W; Oct. 1937; J. Millot leg.; MNHN Ar 10512 • 1 ♀; Sangha [Sanga]; 14.46° N, 3.30° W; Oct. 1937; J. Millot leg.; MNHN Ar 10518 .

Other material examined

None.

Redescription

Male (lectotype)

MEASUREMENTS. Total length 3.5, carapace width 1.45. Distance PME–PME 80 µm; diameter PME 100 × 140 µm; distance PME–ALE 50 µm; diameter AME 95 µm; distance AME–AME 20 µm. Leg 1: 42.0 (12.0 + 0.7 + 11.1 + 15.9 + 2.3), tibia 2: 7.5, tibia 3: 5.5, tibia 4: 6.1; tibia 1 L/d: 72; femora 1–4 diameters: 0.21, 0.18, 0.17, 0.18.

COLOR (in ethanol). Entire specimen very pale, bleached; original coloration ( Millot 1941) apparently similar to other epigean congeners.

BODY. Habitus similar to C. sahtan sp. nov. and C. ghul sp. nov. (cf. Figs 391 , 481 ). Ocular area slightly raised. Deep thoracic pit and pair of furrows diverging from pit toward posterior margin. Clypeus unmodified, only rim more sclerotized than in female. Sternum wider than long (1.05/0.65), unmodified. Abdomen slightly elongated, dorso-posteriorly barely elevated, rounded.

CHELICERAE. As in Figs 362–363 , distally with pair of lateral apophyses provided with one large modified cone-shaped hair each; distance between tips of modified hairs: 390 µm; lateral stridulatory ridges fine but visible in dissecting microscope.

PALPS. As in Figs 354–356 ; coxa with strong retrolateral hump; trochanter barely modified; femur small (relative to tibia), distally on ventral side widened, proximally with prolateral stridulatory pick, without retrolateral transversal line, without retrolateral proximal process; femur-patella joints slightly shifted toward prolateral side (arrows in Fig. 354 ); tibia-tarsus joints shifted toward retrolateral side (arrows in Fig. 356 ); tarsus without macrotrichia; procursus ( Figs 357–358 ) short and straight, proximally on prolateral side with hump set with numerous hairs, dorsal hairs straight or curved downwards, procursus tip with ventral sclerite with short dorsal branch, with distinctive process ending in fringed transparent membrane; genital bulb ( Figs 359–361 ) with simple basal sclerite connected to distal (main) sclerite, connecting sclerite with ventral projection, sperm duct opening not seen; distal sclerite with retrolateral ridge, with two small prolateral apophyses and distal rim widely curved towards prolateral.

LEGS. Femur 1 with single row of ~26 ventral spines; without curved hairs; few vertical hairs; retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 3%; prolateral trichobothrium absent on tibia 1, present on other leg tibiae; tarsal pseudosegments not seen.

Female

In general similar to male but without spines on legs, apparently without stridulatory files on chelicerae, and with stridulatory organ consisting of pair of small whitish processes posteriorly on carapace and pair of small light brown plates anteriorly on abdomen. Tibia 1 in female from Ouagadougou: 9.1. Epigynum as in Fig. 366 , main epigynal plate oval to semicircular, with pair of distinct elongate pockets (distance between pockets ~310 µm); posterior plate more strongly developed laterally than medially. The only female specimen from Ouagadougou was not cleared.

Females from Mali possibly not conspecific with lectotype: very similar epigyna but pockets in female from Sangha slightly closer together ( Fig. 367 ; distance ~250 µm), in females from Bamako considerably farther apart ( Fig. 370 ; distance ~450 µm). Internal genitalia ( Figs 371–372 ; specimen from Bamako) with almost round pore plates, simple dorsal and ventral arcs, ventral arc medially barely modified. Tibia 1 in 2 females from Bamako: 7.8, 8.7 (missing in other females from Mali).

Distribution

Known from three localities in Burkina Faso and southern Mali ( Fig. 352 ).

Figures

Fig. 352. Distribution of Crossopriza Simon, 1893; autochthonous species part 1 (cf. Fig. 353): species with main cheliceral apophyses in lateral position.

Figs 354–356.Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941; lectotype male from Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou (MNHN Ar 10520); mirror images of right palp, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrows: joints between femur and patella and between tibia and tarsus. Scale bar = 0.5 mm.

Figs 357–365.Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941; lectotype male from Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou (MNHN Ar 10520), paralectotype female from Mali, Bamako (MNHN Ar 10512). 357–358. Mirror images of right procursus, prolateral and retrolateral views; arrow: transparent process.359–361. Mirror images of right genital bulb, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views. 362–363. Male chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. 364–365. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views; arrows: pockets. Abbreviations: bs = basal sclerite; ds = distal sclerite; vs = ventral sclerite. Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Figs 366–372. Crossopriza soudanensis Millot, 1941, paralectotypes. 366–367. Epigyna, ventral views, females from Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou (366; MNHN Ar 10520) and from Mali, Sangha (367; MNHN Ar 10518). 368–369. Abdomens, ventral views, females from Burkina Faso, Ouagadougou (368; MNHN Ar 10520) and from Mali, Bamako (369; MNHN Ar 10512). 370. Epigynum, ventral view, female from Mali, Bamako (MNHN Ar 10512). 371–372. Cleared female genitalia, ventral and dorsal views, female from Mali, Bamako (MNHN Ar 10512). Scale bars = 0.5 mm.

Figs 391–398. Crossopriza Simon, 1893, live specimens. 391–392. C. sahtan sp. nov., male and female from Oman, Wadi Ghul. 393–395. C. tiwi sp. nov., males and female with egg-sac from Oman, Wadi Tiwi. 396–398. C. dhofar sp. nov., male and female from Oman, Ain Razad, and female from Oman, Wadi Nahiz.

Figs 475–482. Crossopriza Simon, 1893, live specimens. 475–478. C. moqal sp. nov., male and female from Oman, Moqal Cave. 479–480. C. kittan sp. nov., male and female from Oman, Ibri, Al Kittan Cave. 481–482. C. ghul sp. nov., male and female with egg-sac from Oman, Wadi Ghul.