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| Jorottui ipuanai Moreno-González, Gutierrez-Estrada & Prendini, 2023 DOI: 10.1206/4000.1 |
Abstract
The ancient, enigmatic whip spider family Paracharontidae Weygoldt, 1996, representing the basalmost lineage of the arachnid order Amblypygi Thorell, 1883, is revised. The monotypic West African genus Paracharon Hansen, 1921, from Guinea Bissau, is redescribed, based on a reexamination and reinterpretation of the newly designated lectotype. A new troglobitic whip spider, Jorottui ipuanai, gen. et sp. nov., is described from a cave system in the upper basin of the Camarones River in the La Guajira Department of northeastern Colombia. This new taxon is the second extant representative of Paracharontidae and the first outside Africa. It is unambiguously assigned to the family based on several characters shared with Paracharon caecus Hansen, 1921, notably a projection of the anterior carapace margin, the tritosternum not projecting anteriorly, similar pedipalp spination, a reduced number of trichobothria on the tibia of leg IV, and cushion-like female gonopods. A detailed examination confirmed the absence of ocelli in both genera and the presence of three (Paracharon) vs. four (Jorottui, gen. nov.) prolateral teeth on the basal segment of the chelicera, the dorsalmost tooth bicuspid in both genera. The male gonopods of Paracharontidae are described for the first time. Paracharonopsis cambayensis Engel and Grimaldi, 2014, is removed from Paracharontidae and placed incertae sedis in Euamblypygi Weygoldt, 1996; amended, comparative diagnoses are presented for Paracharontidae and Paracharon; and previous interpretations of various diagnostic characters for Paracharontidae are discussed.
Jorottui, gen. nov.
Diagnosis: Jorottui, gen. nov., shares the following characters with Paracharon: the complete absence of ocelli (fig. 5); pedipalp femur with four primary ventral spines (fig. 14A, C, E); pedipalp patella with three primary dorsal spines and four primary ventral spines (fig. 15); pedipalp tarsus with three dorsal spines (fig. 17B, D, F) and one ventral spine (fig. 17A, C, E); cushionlike female gonopods (fig. 20B; Weygoldt, 1999: 106, fig. 1).
Etymology: The new genus is named after the Wayuu word “Joróttui” which means “place where perennial clarity reigns.” The Wayuu people, original inhabitants of the area in which the new taxon occurs, believe Joróttui is a large cave inside the earth that represents the luminous dome of the sky. The name is a noun in apposition and is masculine in gender.
Jorottui ipuanai, sp. nov.
Etymology: This new species is named after Ramón Paz Ipuana (1937–1992), a Venezuelan Wayuu educator, researcher, linguist, poet and writer, who devoted his life to studying Wayuu culture and promoting the rights and traditions of Wayuu people.
Jairo A. Moreno-González, Miguel Gutierrez-Estrada and Lorenzo Prendini. 2023. Systematic Revision of the Whip Spider Family Paracharontidae (Arachnida: Amblypygi) with Description of A New Troglobitic Genus and Species from Colombia. American Museum Novitates. (4000), 1-36. DOI: 10.1206/4000.1
