Aysha yacupoi Brescovit, 1992

Argañaraz, Carina I., Rubio, Gonzalo D. & Brescovit, Antonio D., 2013, Description of the female of Aysha yacupoi Brescovit 1992 (Araneae: Anyphaenidae), Zootaxa 3652 (5), pp. 582-586 : 583-586

Aysha yacupoi Brescovit, 1992

( Figs. 1–2 )

Aysha yacupoi Brescovit, 1992: 57 , f. 85–87, 174 (Holotype male from Yacú-poi, Misiones, Argentina, October 1954, Orfila coll., MACN-Ar 8739, examined); Platnick, 2012.

Material examined. 2 females and 1 male (MACN-Ar 29395; temporary preparation GDR-0314), Urugua-í Wildlife Reserve (S25.974345°, W54.116330°; 261m. a.s.l.), General Manuel Belgrano, Misiones, ARGENTINA, 19-20 September 2009, G.D. Rubio coll.; 3 males (MACN-Ar 15863), Iguazú National Park (S25.684999º, W54.445890º; 188m. a.s.l.), Iguazú, Misiones, ARGENTINA, 8-15 November 1995, M.J. Ramírez coll.

Diagnosis. The female of A. yacupoi ( Figs. 1–2 ) can be recognized by the combination of having the epigynal plates contiguous to the guide plates ( Figs 1 e, f; 2a) plus the atrium wider than long ( Figs. 1 e, f; 2a–c); which resembles to A. tertulia (Brescovit 1992, figs 74–75) or A. taim (Brescovit 1992, fig 128), respectively.

Differential diagnosis. Aysha yacupoi differs from A. tertulia in that the anterior edge of atrium is procurved ( Fig. 1 e) or slightly folded back ( Fig. 1 f), not recurved; and, the atrium is not triangular as in that species. Moreover can be distinguished from A. taim by having atrium and guide plates different shaped, which leads to a pair of almost parallel copulatory opening; besides the plates are further apart than in A. taim ( Fig. 1 e, f).

Description. Female (MACN-Ar 29395; GDR-0314): Total length 5.74; carapace length 2.80, width 2.03. Chelicerae length 1.07. Eye sizes and interdistances: anterior median eye (AME) 0.09, anterior lateral eye (ALE) 0.14, posterior median eye (PME) 0.12, posterior lateral eye (PLE) 0.14, AME-ALE 0.05, PME-PLE 0.14, ALE- PLE 0.09, AME-AME 0.07, ALE-ALE 0.3, PME-PME 0.14, PLE-PLE 0.52. Abdomen length 2.94, width 2.03. Spiracle–epigastrium 0.50, spiracle–spinnerets 1.39. Legs length: Leg I, femur 2.38, patella 1.07, tibia 2.38, metatarsus 1.90, tarsus 1.19; leg II, femur 1.95, patella 1.02, tibia 1.78, metatarsus 1.55, tarsus 0.83; leg III, femur 1.66, patella 0.86, tibia 1.28, metatarsus 1.43, tarsus 0.66; and leg IV, femur 2.43, patella 1.12, tibia 2.09, metatarsus 2.40, tarsus 0.95. Leg formula IV/I/II/III. Color in ethanol ( Fig. 1 ): carapace pale orange, with thick brown stripes on both sides of the fovea; chelicerae, labium and endites pale orange; sternum yellow; legs light brown-yellowish. Abdomen pale orange, with brown spots dorsally and in posterior sides, ventrally pale yellow with some dispersed brown spots. Epigyne ( Fig. 1 e, f; 2a): large epigynal plates contiguous to the guide plates; atrium wider than long. Vulva ( Fig. 2 b–c, e): small seminal receptacles at level of anterior edge of atrium, connected to a long and slender duct with a loop.

Variation. Two females: Total length 5.53–5.74; carapace length 2.73–2.80, width 2.03–2.17; Abdomen width 1.96–2.03. The anterior edge of atrium can be procurved or slightly folded back ( Fig. 1 e, f).

Natural history. Most A. yacupoi specimens were found in areas of open canopy rainforest, where are an invasive growth of a native bamboo species ( Chusquea ramosissima Lindm. ). This bamboo can dominate gaps and open forests in the region, particularly after human disturbance (Montti et al. 2011). This suggests certain adaptation of the A. yacupoi to the anthropic changes in the forest. Adults were found in early spring. The specimens from Iguazú National Park were found in grasses near the waterfalls.

Distribution. Southeastern Brazil (state of Paraná), and Northeastern Argentina (Misiones Province).

Acknowledgments

We want to thank the staff of the Urugua-í Wildlife Reserve (Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina –FVSA) for its hospitality and lodging; to Emiliano Ocampo, Lisandro Negrete, Julián Lescano,

Mauricio Akmentis, Victor Zaracho, Marcelo Bonino, Laura Arejolas and Ariel Tombo for your assists on field sampling. We also wish to thank Tamás Szüts and the two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments and corrections on the manuscript. This work was supported by a research scholarship given to G.D.R. by FVSA and CONICET. To CNPq (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, to ADB, # 300169 / 1996-5).

References

Brescovit, A.D. (1992) Revisão do grupo prospera do gênero Aysha Keyserling, 1891 na região Neotropical (Araneae: Anyphaenidae). Iheringia (Zool.), 72, 23–104.

Brescovit, A.D. (1997) Revisão de Anyphaeninae Bertkau a nível de gêneros na região Neotropical (Araneae, Anyphaenidae). Revista Brasileira de Zoologia, 13 (1), 1–187.

Cabrera, A.L. & Willink, A. (1980) Biogeografía de América Latina. OEA, Serie de Biología, Monografía 13, Washington D.C., 120 pp.

Montti, L., Campanello, P.I., Gatti, M.G., Blundo C., Austin A.T., Sala O.E., & Goldstein, G. (2011) Understory bamboo flowering provides a very narrow light window of opportunity for canopy-tree recruitment in a Neotropical forest of Misiones, Argentina. Forest Ecology and Management, 262, 1360–1369.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2011.06.029

Platnick, N.I. (1974) The spider family Anyphaenidae in America north of Mexico. Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology, 146 (4), 205–266.

Platnick, N.I. (2012) The world spider catalog, version 13.0. American Museum of Natural History. Avialable from: http/:research.anmh.org/iz/spiders/catalog/ANYPHAENIDAE.html (Accessed 2 November 2012).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Aysha yacupoi Brescovit 1992. a – d, female habitus (a: dorsal, b: lateral, c: ventral, d: frontal); e – f, epigyne ventral, variability of two females from same site (e: specimen 1, f: specimen 2). (A = atrium; CO = copulatory opening; EP = epigynal plate; GP = guide plate). Scale bars: a – c (2 mm); d (1 mm); e, f (0.2 mm)

FIGURE 2. Aysha yacupoi Brescovit 1992. a – c, e, female genitalia (a: digested epigyne ventral, b: digested vulva, c: digested vulva drawing, e: details of the vulva); d, female habitus dorsal drawing. (FD = fertilization duct; S = spermathecae; SR = seminal receptacle; SRd = duct of SR). Scale bars: a, b (0.2 mm); c (0.5 mm); e (0.1 mm).