Buitinga, Huber, 2003

Huber, Bernhard A., 2003, High species diversity in one of the dominant groups of spiders in East African montane forests (Araneae: Pholcidae: Buitinga n. gen., Spermophora Hentz), Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 137 (4), pp. 555-619 : 557-559

BUITINGA N. GEN.

Type species. Buitinga kadogo n. sp.

Etymology. Derived from the Swahili for ‘large spider’ (bui) and ‘vibrate’ (tinga). It refers to the vibrating and whirling movements that many long-legged pholcids make when disturbed. Gender feminine.

Diagnosis. Long-legged, 6-eyed pholcids with globular or elongate opisthosoma and variable size (total length ~1.5–3). Easily distinguished from other genera by the scape on the epigynum (e.g. Figs 56 , 62 , 69 ); only ‘Spermophora’ berlandi has a similar scape ( Fig. 266 ) that is here considered a convergence. Also distinguished by the very distal position of the dorsal palpal trichobothrium (e.g. Figs 59 , 86 , 219 ). The males of

Figures

Figures 51–57. Buitinga kadogo. Left male palp in prolateral (51) and retrolateral (52) views, male chelicerae in frontal (53) and lateral (54) views, modified hairs on male cheliceral apophysis (55), and cleared epigynum in ventral (56) and dorsal (57) views. ‘e’: embolus; ‘dt’: dorsal trichobothrium; ‘to’: tarsal organ; arrows point to distinctive structures of procursus. Scale bars = 0.3 mm (51, 52), 0.2 mm (53, 54, 56, 57), 30 Mm (55).

Figures 58–63. Buitinga mazumbai. Left male palp in prolateral (58) and retrolateral (59) views, male chelicerae in lateral (60) view, modified hairs on male cheliceral apophysis (61), and cleared epigynum in ventral (62) and dorsal (63) views. ‘e’: embolus; ‘dt’: dorsal trichobothrium; ‘va’: ventral apophysis on palpal coxa. Scale bars = 0.3 mm (58, 59, 62, 63), 0.2 mm (60), 30 Mm (61).

Figures 64–70. Buitinga lakilingo. Left male palp in prolateral (64) and retrolateral (65) views, male chelicerae in frontal (66) and lateral (67) views, modified hairs on male cheliceral apophysis (68), and cleared epigynum in ventral (69) and dorsal (70) views. ‘e’: embolus; ‘p’: distinctive papilla on bulb; ‘va’: ventral apophysis on palpal coxa. Scale bars = 0.5 mm (64, 65), 0.2 mm (66, 67, 69, 70), 50 Mm (68).

Figures 262–267. ‘Spermophora’ berlandi. Left male palp in prolateral (262) and retrolateral (263) views, male chelicerae in frontal view (264), apophysis and modified hairs distally on male chelicerae (265), and cleared epigynum in ventral (266) and dorsal (267) views. ‘f ’: ‘Spermophora-flap’; ‘hp’: hinged process; ‘i’: indented area on bulb. Scale bars = 0.5 mm (262, 263, 266, 267), 0.3 mm (264), 50 Mm (265).

Figures 85–91. Buitinga amani. Left male palp in prolateral (85) and retrolateral (86) views, male chelicerae in frontal (87) and lateral (88) views, modified hairs on male cheliceral apophysis (89), and cleared epigynum in ventral (90) and dorsal (91) views. ‘e’: embolus; ‘dt’: dorsal trichobothrium; ‘va’: ventral apophysis on palpal coxa; arrow points to structure that winds around procursus ventrally. Scale bars = 0.3 mm (85, 86), 0.2 mm (87, 88, 90, 91), 30 Mm (89).

Figures 218–220. Buitinga kanzuiri. Left male palp in prolateral (218) and retrolateral (219) views, and male chelicerae in frontal view (220). ‘e’: embolus; ‘dt’: dorsal trichobothrium. Scale bars = 0.5 mm (218, 219), 0.3 mm (220).