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Stenaelurillus shwetamukhi Marathe, Sanap, & Maddison, S. tamravarni Marathe & Maddison& S. vyaghri Sanap, Joglekar, & Caleb microhabitats of Stenaelurillus shwetamukhi sp. nov. and S. tamravarni sp. nov. (Figs. 116–118); S. marusiki and S. vyaghri sp. nov. (Fig. 119). in Marathe, Sanap, ... et Maddison, 2022. |
Abstract
We describe three new species of Stenaelurillus Simon, 1886 from the Deccan Plateau of India, and report on populations of S. sarojinae Caleb & Mathai, 2014 and S. marusiki Logunov, 2001. One of the new species, S. shwetamukhi Marathe, Sanap, & Maddison, sp. nov., has black-and-white markings, characteristic of several other Indian Stenaelurillus species. The other two new species, S. tamravarni Marathe & Maddison, sp. nov., and S. vyaghri Sanap, Joglekar, & Caleb, sp. nov., are colourful and with fringed male abdomens, like several other Indian species including S. sarojinae. The population of S. sarojinae from Mysuru, Karnataka, shows colours distinct from the population at the type locality. The female of S. marusiki is described for the first time.
Key words: Aelurillines, biodiversity research, Deccan peninsula, new species, scrublands, species discovery, taxonomy
Salticidae Blackwall, 1841
Tribe Aelurillini Simon, 1901
Subtribe Aelurillina Simon, 1901
Stenaelurillus Simon, 1886
Type species: Stenaelurillus nigricaudus Simon, 1886
Stenaelurillus marusiki Logunov, 2001
Stenaelurillus sarojinae Caleb & Mathai, 2014
Stenaelurillus shwetamukhi Marathe, Sanap & Maddison, sp. nov.
Etymology. The name is derived from Sanskrit, shweta meaning white, mukhi meaning faced, referring to the male’s white face.
Diagnosis. One of the black and white species. A short, stout, hook-shaped embolus twisted retrolaterally near the pointy tip distinguishes S. shwetamukhi sp. nov. from other species, and most notably the similar S. albus, whose embolus is narrower, more extended, and with a blunt tip (Sebastian et al. 2015; figs. 2E, G).S. shwetamukhi sp. nov. differs from S. albus also in having prominent white spots on the male abdomen (S. albus, dark and spotless). S. shwetamukhi sp. nov. is also distinctive among the black and white species for the roundness of the TP, and the indentation on the prolateral edge of the salticid radix (at about 10 o’ clock)
Stenaelurillus tamravarni Marathe & Maddison, sp. nov.
Etymology. The name is derived from Sanskrit, tamra meaning copper, varni meaning coloured, referring to the cupreous sheen on some of the body’s scales.
Diagnosis. Of the fringed-abdomen species, Stenaelurillus tamravarni sp. nov. is unique for the muted colour of the male’s abdomen and the prolaterally-leaning embolus. The male abdomen appears as a brindled greyish brown in the anterior half, composed of a mix of cream and copper scales, much less colourful than the orange of S. metallicus and S. vyaghri sp. nov., and with longer fringes. The embolus differs from S. metallicus in being thicker, especially basally, and from S. vyaghrisp. nov. in leaning prolaterally and lacking a basal retrolateral cusp. The RTA of S. tamravarnisp. nov. is longer than that of S. metallicus, more pointed than that of S. vyaghri sp. nov.. The female of S. tamravarnisp. nov. has markings with less contrast than those of S. metallicus and S. vyaghri sp. nov.with abdominal spots quite indistinct.
Stenaelurillus vyaghri Sanap, Joglekar & Caleb, sp. nov.
Etymology. The name is derived from the Sanskrit root word vyaghra. We call this species vyaghri, meaning “like a tiger”, as the male spider’s orange and black body colouration resembles that of a tiger.
Diagnosis. Stenaelurillus vyaghri sp. nov. males have an orange abdomen, like S. metallicus, but lacks the latter’s pair of black spots and the bright orange-red laterally and medially. S. vyaghrisp. nov. further differs from S. metallicus and S. tamravarni sp. nov. in the short, thick embolus with a broad base having a retrolateral cusp, and in the inconspicuous TP. The females can be distinguished by the globular spermathecae (bean-shaped in S. sarojinae; globular and double-chambered in S. metallicus) and a well-developed, narrow, and deep epigynal pocket
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| Photographs showing microhabitats of Stenaelurillus shwetamukhi sp. nov. and S. tamravarni sp. nov.(Figs. 116–118); S. marusiki and S. vyaghri sp. nov. (Fig. 119). These grassland and scrubland habitats offer a variety of microhabitats suitable for aelurillines. We have documented a considerable diversity of Langelurillus, Langona, Phanuelus, Phlegra and other species of Stenaelurillus. |
Kiran Marathe, Rajesh Sanap, Anuradha Joglekar, John T. D. Caleb and Wayne P. Maddison. 2022. Three New and Notes On Two Other Jumping Spider Species of the Genus Stenaelurillus Simon, 1886 (Salticidae: Aelurillina) from the Deccan Plateau, India. Zootaxa. 5125(1); 1-19. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5125.1.1
