Araniella villanii, Zamani & Marusik & Šestáková, 2020

Zamani, Alireza, Marusik, Yuri M. & Sestakova, Anna, 2020, On Araniella and Neoscona (Araneae, Araneidae) of the Caucasus, Middle East and Central Asia, ZooKeys 906, pp. 13-40 : 13

Araniella villanii sp. nov. Figs 1B, D ; 3A, B ; 4C, D ; 5A, B ; 7A ; 8A ; 9A ; 10A ; 18

Type material.

Iran: Holotype ♂ and paratypes 1♀ (MHNG), Chaharmahal & Bakhtiari Province: Kuhrang, 32°28'N, 50°08'E, 19.06.1974 (A. Senglet). Kazakhstan: 2♂ 4♀ (ZMMU), East Kazakhstan Region: Urzhar Distr., Tarbagatai Mt. Range, 5 km NE of Alekseevka, Urzharka river canyon, left bank, 47°17'N, 81°37'E, 1050-1200 m, 23.06.2001 (A.V. Gromov); 3♂ 4♀ (ZMMU), Urzhar Distr., 7-8 km NE of Karatuma [=Kirovka], Tarbagatai Mt. Range, Sholakterek river canyon, left bank, 47°10'N, 82°06'E, 1200-1250 m, 23.06.2001 (A.V. Gromov); 1♂ 2♀ (ZMMU), Urzhar Distr., ca. 4 km NE of Kyzylbulak [=Petrovskoye], Kyzylbulak river canyon, left bank, 47°03'N, 82°18'E, 1100-1150 m, 21.06.2001 (A.V. Gromov). India: 6♂ 2♀ (MMUE), Himachal Pradesh State: Tandi Vill., 5 km S of Keylong, 2700 m, 11.06.1999 (Y.M. Marusik); 1♂ 1♀ (MMUE), Jahalman Vill., 32°38'N, 76°51'E, 3000-3100 m, 13.06.1999 (Y.M. Marusik).

Comparative material.

Araniella proxima ( Kulczyński, 1885). Russia: 1♂ 1♀ (ZMMU): SE Tuva, Tere-Khol Lake, Sharlaa Stand and vicinity, 50°01'N, 95°03'E, 1050 m, 6-14.07.1996 (Y.M. Marusik).

Etymology.

This species is named after French mathematician Cédric Villani (born 5.10.1973), winner of the Fields Medal in 2010 and the former director of Sorbonne University’s Henri Poincaré Institute, for his "mysterious love" for spiders.

Diagnosis.

Male palp and epigyne resemble those of A. proxima and A. opisthographa . Both species, compared to A. villanii sp. nov., have similar shape of embolus, and terminal apophysis is identical to that of A. proxima and conductor is identical to that of A. opisthographa . However, the new species can be diagnosed by the following characteristics: 1) the tegulum in A. villanii sp. nov. is markedly shorter, higher, protruding and rounded, vs. more compact non-protruding tegulum with distinctly higher ridge in A. proxima , and slender with pointed tip in A. opisthographa ; 2) the terminal apophysis in A. villanii sp. nov. is almost as wide throughout its length, vs. wider at the tip in A. opisthographa ; 3) the conductor in A. villanii sp. nov. has one spike and one more rounded process connected to each other, vs. two independent spikes in A. proxima ; 4) the median apophysis in A. villanii sp. nov. is longer in comparison to both mentioned species; 5) epigyne of A. villanii sp. nov. has a distinctly broader scape, vs. slender in A. proxima and A. opisthographa ; 6) the median plate is narrower and more rectangular in the new species, vs. wider and rounded plate in A. opisthographa and triangular plate in A. proxima ; 7) receptacles and entrance ducts in A. villanii sp. nov. do not touch each other, but in A. opisthographa both structures touch each other, and in A. proxima only receptacles touch each other.

Description

(colors and pattern seem faded). Male (holotype). Habitus as in Fig. 1B . Total length 4.37. Carapace 1.91 long, 1.69 wide in pars thoracica, 0.76 in pars cephalica. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME: 0.08, ALE: 0.07, PME: 0.09, PLE: 0.09, AME-AME: 0.12, PME-PME: 0.11. Carapace, sternum, labium, chelicerae, and maxillae reddish brown, lighter ventrally, carapace with two broad dark marginal bands. Legs lighter in color than the carapace, distally with dark broad annulations. Abdomen pale (stored in alcohol, most probably green in live specimens) dorsally, dark gray ventrally, posterodorsally with three pairs of black lateral spots. Spinnerets light brown, apical segment lighter. Leg I measurements: 6.43 (1.97, 0.82, 1.50, 1.46, 0.68).

Palp as in Figs 3A, B ; 4C, D ; 5A, B . Tegulum terminally blunt with round ridge; terminal apophysis with blunt end and almost equally wide along its length; embolus triangular-shaped, with wider base; median apophysis sickle-shaped bent upwards with pointed tip ending near base of embolus and covered by many small denticles; conductor with one distinct spike and one more rounded process.

Female. Habitus as in Fig. 1D . Total length 6.00. Carapace 2.58 long, 2.15 wide in pars thoracica, 1.29 in pars cephalica. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME: 0.09, ALE: 0.08, PME: 0.10, PLE: 0.09, AME-AME: 0.14, PME-PME: 0.12. Coloration as in male. Leg I measurements: 6.78 (1.93, 0.98, 1.49, 1.51, 0.87).

Epigyne as in Figs 7A , 8A , 9A , 10A . Scape wider in the middle, extending beyond epigynal plate. Copulatory ducts not clearly visible through epigyne cuticle. Oval receptacles are about half their diameter apart; entrance ducts a similar distance apart. Median plate (posterior view), between lateral sclerotized copulatory bulges, slender, slightly wider in the middle.

Phenology.

All adult specimens were collected in mid and late June.

Distribution.

Known only from the type localities in southwestern Iran, eastern Kazakhstan and northern India. Potentially widely distributed in the Middle East and Central Asia.

Figures

Figure 1. Dorsal habitus of Araniella mithra sp. nov. (A, C) and A. villanii sp. nov. (B, D) and abdomen of A. nigromaculata (E). A, B Males C, D females. Blue triangles point on black dots on opisthosoma. Scale bars: 1 mm.

Figure 3. Male palps of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A, B) and A. proxima (C, D). A, C Retrolateral B, D ventral. Scale bars: 0.2 mm.

Figure 4. Male palps of Araniella mithra sp. nov. (A, B) and A. villanii sp. nov. (C, D). A, C Retrolateral B, D ventral. Abbreviations: Co conductor, Em embolus, Ma median apophysis, Ra radix, Ta terminal apophysis, Tr tegular ridge, Tt tip of tegulum. Scale bars: 0.2 mm.

Figure 5. SEM graphs of the bulbs of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A, B) and A. proxima (C, D). A, C Retrolateral B, D ventro-retrolateral. Blue - median apophysis, green - embolus, red - terminal apophysis, violet - conductor. Scale bars: 0.1 mm.

Figure 7. Ventral view of epigynes of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A), A. proxima (B), A. mithra sp. nov. (C) and A. opisthographa (D). Scale bar: 0.2 mm.

Figure 8. Posterior view of epigynes of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A), A. proxima (B), A. mithra sp. nov. (C), A. opisthographa (D) and A. nigromaculata (E). Scale bars: 0.2 mm.

Figure 9. Anterior view of epigynes of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A), A. proxima (B), A. mithra sp. nov. (C) and A. opisthographa (D).

Figure 10. Lateral view of epigynes of Araniella villanii sp. nov. (A), A. proxima (B), A. mithra sp. nov. (C) and A. opisthographa (D). Scale bars: 0.2 mm.

Figure 18. Distribution records of Araniella mithra sp. nov. (blue circle), A. villanii sp. nov. (violet star), Neoscona isatis sp. nov. (green pentagon), N. spasskyi (black square), N. theisi (gray triangle, only new records) and N. tedgenica (brown asterisk).