Eremocosta, Roewer, 1934

Cushing, Paula E., Channiago, Felix & Brookhart, Jack O., 2018, Revision of the camel spider genus Eremocosta Roewer and a description of the female Eremocosta gigas Roewer (Arachnida, Solifugae), Zootaxa 4402 (3), pp. 443-466 : 458-459

Eremocosta ? spinipalpis (Kraepelin 1899)

Datames spinipalpis Kraepelin 1899a: 243 –244.

Eremobates spinipalpis (Kraepelin 1899) : Kraepelin 1901: 124. Eremorhax spinipalpis (Kraepelin 1899) : Muma 1970: 8. Eremocosta spinipalpis (Kraepelin 1899) : Harvey 2002: 451.

Type material. Female holotype from Santa Rosalio , Lower California , México, coll. S. Diguet, Number 33–97 in Muséum National d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris , France. Type not examined. Male unknown.

Diagnosis. Muma (1970) distinguishes E. spinipalpis from the related E. striatus by the lack of markings on the legs and palpi and the “curved lateral margins of the median caudal opercular notch.”

Measurements. From Muma (1970). TL 30; CL 10.2; CH 5.0; PL 31; PT 3.0; PMT 14.2; LI 18; LIV 30; PPL 4.6.

Distribution. Known from type only. MÉXICO: Baja California Sur. Biome: Sonoran Desert.

Discussion. Since Kraepelin (1899a) described the female only, the placement of this species is speculative as the presence of the male VDC is a critical criterion in determining this genus. The female genital operculum figured by Muma (1970) closely resembles that of Eremocosta striata . Its type locality on the southern Baja Peninsula would seem to separate it from E. striata but until further specimens are examined, the placement will remain in Eremocosta .

Kraepelin (1899a) described the palp as having spines “with width equal to height,” hence the name. Eremocosta formidabilis female also has some short, robust palpal setae that might be interpreted as spines. Muma’s (1987) Eremocosta key does not include E. spinipalpis but his unpublished manuscript (in library of JOB) does.