Scoterpes syntheticus (Shear) Shear, 2010

Shear, William A., 2010, 2385, Zootaxa 2385, pp. 1-62 : 59-60

Scoterpes syntheticus (Shear) , new combination.

Fig. 86, Map 7

Trichopetalum syntheticum Shear, 1972, p. 278 . New Combination.

Type: Male holotype from Crossings Cave , 1.5 mi N of Paint Rock, Jackson Co., Alabama ( MCZ) .

Etymology: This species was named in the mistaken belief that it provided evidence for the synonymy of Zygonopus with Trichopetalum .

Diagnosis: Distinct from all other Scoterpes species in its small size and evidently much reduced gonopods, which lack median angiocoxites and have short, simple, truncated lateral angiocoxites.

Description of male holotype: Length, 5.5 mm, width 0.6 mm. Nonsexual characters typical of genus. Pregonopodal legs not encrassate. Gonopods ( Fig. 86) very small, coxae distinct from sternum, median coxal setae 3, tightly clustered, 10 setae in each lateral group, lateral group covers about half of each coxa; median angiocoxites absent, lateral angiocoxites very short, squared-off distally; fimbriate branch about as long as lateral angiocoxites. Legpair 9 typical, legpairs 10, 11 as usual.

Description of female from Paint Rock Cave: Length, 5.8 mm, width 0.6 mm. Nonsexual characters as in male.

Distribution: See Map 7 for selected records. All records supported by males, all specimens FSCA unless otherwise noted. ALABAMA: Blount Co. Bangor Cave, 1 mi N Bangor, 25 January 1961, W. R. Janks; 28 June 1967, S. B. Peck, A. Fiske; Bryant Cave, 19 March 1966, S. B. Peck; Catfish Cave, 1 mi SE Blount Springs, 5 April 1967, S. B. Peck; Randolph Cave, 12 December 1957, H. Steeves; 15 June 1967, T. Barr, R. Norton; Wildcat Cave, Blountsville, 17 May 1959, H. Steeves. Jackson Co. Blowing Cave, 15 March 1959, H. Steeves; Kennamer Cave, 15 March 1966, S. B. Peck; Paint Rock Cave, 0.5 mi W of Paint Rock, 20 December 1965, S. B. Peck. Jefferson Co. (unamed) cave 0.75 mi NE of Crystal Caverns, Clay, 10 September 1965, S. B. Peck; Crystal Caverns, 4 April 1959, H. Steeves; 18 November 1965, S. B. Peck. Madison Co. Cave Spring Cave, N of New Hope, 30 December 1965, S. B. Peck. Marshall Co. Kristy’s Cave, 16 April 1970, W. Torode ( NCSM). St. Clair Co. McGlendon Cave, 4 mi N of junction of US 11 and 131, 15 June 1967, S. B. Peck, A. Fiske.

Notes: I described this species in 1972 as a Trichopetalum largely based on the small size, simple gonopods, and a mistaken segment count—the single damaged male available was counted at 28 trunk segments. In fact that male probably had 30 segments, as do all the other males and females of the species. This is undoubtedly a Scoterpes . Causey, who evidently always considered the species in Scoterpes , labelled material “steevesi steevesi,” “steevesi merus,” and “steevesi pectus.” The distribution pattern is unusual and probably not an artifact of limited collecting. One group of populations occurs in Jackson, Madison and Marshall counties north of the Tennessee River, sympatrically with S. stewartpecki , in fact, in caves less than 1 km apart. The other group, in Blount, St. Clair and Jefferson counties south of the river represents the most southerly distribution of the genus (Crystal Caverns a little northwest of Birmingham is the southernmost record). Causey recognized Blount Co. records as “steevesi steevesi” and Jefferson and St. Clair Co. records as “steevesi merus,” but I cannot distinguish them and there are no obvious barriers except possibly the Locust Fork of the Black Warrior River. None of the specimens in the Causey collection from Jackson Co. had gonopods in the vials, but the type is from Jackson Co. and specimens from Madison and Marshall counties are S. syntheticum . Possibly further collecting will unite the populations across the Tennessee River, or it may be that more than one species is involved, despite my inability to distinguish them on the basis of gonopod anatomy.