Thursday, January 3, 2019

[Arachnida • 2018] Cyclosa bulla • A New Species of Cyclosa (Araneae: Araneidae) from Southeast Asia


Cyclosa bulla  
Tanikawa & Petcharad, 2018

  DOI: 10.2476/asjaa.67.87 

Abstract
A new species of Cyclosa is described under the name of Cyclosa bulla n. sp. using specimens collected from Thailand, Singapore and Brunei. Females of the species can be easily distinguished from other congeners by the shape of the abdomen, which has a globose posterior end. In contrast, males cannot be distinguished from those of Cyclosa bifida, which seems to be the most closely related species, even by the shape of the palpal organ. In this study, male specimens are identified by DNA barcoding.

Keywords: Cyclosa bulla, taxonomy, COI, barcoding, Thailand, Singapore, Brunei



 Cyclosa bulla n. sp. 
A, female (holotype), dorsal view; B, same, lateral view; C, paratype (male), dorsal view..
 Scales: A–C, 1 mm.

Cyclosa bulla new species 
[Thai name: Mangmoum-Taai-Klom-Cyclosa]

Diagnosis. The new species seems to be closely related to Cyclosa bifida, but females can be easily distinguished from Cyclosa bifida by the posteriorly globose abdomen (Figs. 2A–B). Males of these species cannot be separated morphologically, even by the shape of the palpal organ. Male specimens of the new species can be identified only by DNA sequencing data, e.g. mt-COI.

Etymology. The specific name is derived from the knob-like shaped posterior part of the abdomen; “bulla” is a Latin word that means “globe”. 


Akio Tanikawa and Booppa Petcharad. 2018. A New Species of Cyclosa (Araneae: Araneidae) from Southeast Asia. Acta Arachnologica. 67(2); 87-90. DOI: 10.2476/asjaa.67.87