﻿Three new species of Otacilia Thorell, 1897 (Araneae, Phrurolithidae) from South China

﻿Abstract Three new Otacilia species were collected from Jiangxi Provinces, China during a survey of the spider fauna of the region: Otaciliaanfu Liu, sp. nov. (♂♀), O.guanshan Liu, sp. nov. (♂♀), and O.mingyueshan Liu, sp. nov. (♂♀). All species are described and illustrated with photographs and SEM micrographs, and their distribution is also mapped.


Introduction
Over the past four years, the number of phrurolithid species worldwide has increased greatly, especially from China, where the fauna has multiplied several times.Currently, there are 366 species belong to 24 genera worldwide (WSC 2023).Almost half of them (173 species) from 14 genera were recorded in China.The total number is still increasing, based on several arachnologists' work, such as Dr Feng Zhang, Dr Chi Jin, Dr Xiang Xu, Dr Shu-qiang Li, and Dr Ke-ke Liu, who reported nearly 100 new species in the past five years (Liu et al. 2019(Liu et al. , 2020a(Liu et al. , b, 2021(Liu et al. , 2022a(Liu et al. , b, 2023;;Yao et al. 2019a, b;Liang et al. 2021;Mu andZhang 2021, 2022;Jin et al. 2022;Mu et al. 2022a, b).All these species were discovered in southern China, and many new genera were erected at the same time.However, there are still many unknown phrurolithid species from southern China with unusual morphological characteristics.
The genus Otacilia Thorell, 1897 is the largest genus among the genera of Phrurolithidae (WSC 2023).It was intertwined with Phrurolithus C.L. Koch, 1839 for a long time.Zamani and Marusik (2020) made the distinction between Otacilia and Phrurolithus based on many morphological characters and transferred 27 species of Phrurolithus to Otacilia.Subsequently, the genus Otacilia is so large and the morphological variation within its supposed members so broad that the assignment of some species to Otacilia has been questioned.Since then, many species have been newly combined or re-assigned in new genera, such as Aculithus Liu & Li, 2022, Alboculus Liu, 2020, Corealithus Kamura, 2021, Grandilithus Liu & Li, 2022, Lunalithus Kamura, 2022, Pennalithus Kamura, 2021, and Xilithus Liu & Li, 2022(Liu et al. 2020a, 2022a;Kamura 2021Kamura , 2022)).However, there still remain many species misplaced in this genus.
During the past 10 years, we have focused on sac spiders in Jiangxi Province, southern China, and 62 phrurolithid species with unusual characters have been found (Liu et al. 2020a(Liu et al. , 2020b(Liu et al. , 2021(Liu et al. , 2022a)).There are still many unknown phrurolithidae species from this province with unusual morphological characteristics.In the last year, we examined the phrurolithid specimens collected from Jiangxi Province, and three new Otacilia species were discovered.The goal of this paper is to describe these new species.

Material and method
Specimens were examined using a SZ6100 stereomicroscope.Both male and female genital organs were dissected and examined in 80% ethanol using an Olympus CX43 compound microscope with a KUY NICE CCD camera.The epigynes were cleared with pancreatin solution.Specimens, including dissected male palps and epigynes, were preserved in 75% ethanol after examination.For SEM photographs, the specimens were kept under natural dry conditions, coated with gold with a small ion-sputtering apparatus ETD-2000, and photographed with a Zeiss EVO LS15 scanning electron microscope.All other specimens are deposited in the Animal Specimen Museum, College of Life Science, Jinggangshan University (ASM-JGSU).
The measurements were taken using a stereomicroscope (Axio Vision SE64 rel.4.8.3) and are given in millimetres.The body lengths of all specimens exclude the chelicerae and spinnerets.Terminology of the male and female genitalia follows Liu et al. (2022aLiu et al. ( , b, 2023)).
Leg measurements are given as total length (including femur, patella, tibia, metatarsus, tarsus).Leg spines are documented by dividing each leg segment into four aspects: dorsal (d), prolateral (p), and retrolateral (r), and indicating the ventral (v) spines as single (1) or paired (2), e.g., femur I d2, p1111; tibia d1, I v2222.The abbreviations used in the figures and text are as follows: Etymology.The specific name derived from Anfu County, where the type locality is situated; it is treated as a noun in apposition.
Colouration (Fig. 1A, B).Carapace yellow-brown, with radial, irregular, dark yellow-brown mottled markings on surface.Chelicerae, endites and labium yellow-brown.Sternum yellow; lateral margins with dark mottled markings.Legs yellow, without brown annulations.Abdomen brown, with pair of small round and pair of large oval yellow spots on medial dorsal scutum, three pale chevron-shaped stripes on subposterior part, and two yellowish arc-shaped stripes posteriorly; venter with blurred H-shaped and pair of sloping markings posteriorly.
Distribution.Known only from the type locality in Jiangxi Province, China (Fig. 9).Etymology.The specific name derived from the type locality, Guanshan National Nature Reserve; used as a noun in apposition.
Colouration (Fig. 3A, B).Carapace yellow with conspicuous, irregular, darkyellow-brown mottled markings radially along midline and arc-shaped dark stripes around margin.Chelicerae and endites yellow-brown.Labium yellow-brown.Sternum yellow.Legs yellow.Abdomen black-brown, with pair of small, oval and pair of irregular yellowish spots on posterior dorsal scutum, three pale chevron-shaped stripes on subposterior part, and indistinct, yellowish, arc-shaped stripe posteriorly; venter with trapezoidal marking and pair of sloping stripes posteriorly.
Colouration (Fig. 4A, B).Paler than male.Abdomen yellow to black-brown, dorsally with four dark-brown, chevron-shaped stripes on submedial part, and two arc-shaped, short stripes posteriorly; venter with pair of triangular markings and pair of transverse stripes posteriorly.
Distribution.Known only from the type locality in Jiangxi Province, China (Fig. 9).Etymology.The specific name derived from the type locality, Mingyueshan National Forest Park; noun in apposition.
Fig. 3E, F and Fig. 5E, F and Liu et al.  2020b: 17, fig.12E, F)  and the hook-shaped embolus strongly curved backward (vs crescent-shaped embolus curved forward in O. mingyueshan sp.nov.and in O. wugongshanica) (cf.Fig.3Dand Fig.5DandLiu et al. 2020b: 17, fig.12D).The female resemble those of O. mingyueshan sp.nov., and O. wugongshanicaLiu, 2020 (Liu et al. 2020b: 17, fig.14C, D)  in having the bow and arrow-shaped mark on the epigynal plate, but the new species can be separated from them by having the fovea without a distinct sclerotised transverse anterior margin (vs with a short, sclerotised transverse margin in O. mingyueshan sp.nov.and