Monday, August 26, 2024

[Arachnida • 2024] Ligdus garvale • Reviving Ligdus Thorell, 1895 (Araneae: Salticidae: Ballini): Description of A New Species from India, 129 years since the Establishment of the Genus


Ligdus garvale Caleb, 

in Caleb, Shree, Kumar et Abhijith, 2024. 

The jumping spider genus Ligdus Thorell, 1895 was established as a monotypic genus with Ligdus chelifer Thorell, 1895 as its type species (Thorell 1895). The only known species was described based on a juvenile specimen collected from Tharawaddy, Myanmar (erstwhile Burma), which was later illustrated by Prószyński (1984). During recent field work in Kodagu, Karnataka we collected a peculiar male individual which was later identified as belonging to the genus Ligdus. In this paper, we present the rediscovery of the genus Ligdus 129 years since its establishment, through the description of a new species from Karnataka state, India. The genus is moreover reported for the first time in India.
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Araneae, Salticidae, Ballini, Ligdus, India

General appearance of Ligdus garvale Caleb, sp. nov.,
 holotype male. 1, 2 dorsal view; 3 left leg I; 4 lateralview; 5 front view; 6 spider in its retreat built on a leaf.
Photo credits: 1–5, A.P.C. Abhijith; 6, Divya Shree.

Ligdus garvale Caleb, sp. nov.


John T.D. Caleb, A. Divya Shree, Lohith Kumar and A.P.C. Abhijith. 2024. Reviving Ligdus Thorell, 1895: Description of A New Species from India, 129 years since the Establishment of the Genus (Araneae: Salticidae: Ballini). Zootaxa. 5448(3):446-450. DOI: doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5448.3.8