Allozelotes lushan Yin & Peng, 1998.

See Yin and Peng (1998).

This genus includes only four species from China, two of them (A. microsaccatus Yang, Zhang, Zhang & Kim, 2009 and A. songi Yang, Zhang, Zhang & Kim, 2009) are known only from females (WSC 2023).

China (Hunan, Jiangxi, Yunnan).

Holotype ♀, China: Xizang Autonomous Region, Gyirong County, 2800 m elev., 17.XII.1983, Y. Yan leg., examined.

This species resembles A. microsaccatus in having a similar epigyne structure, but it can be distinguished by the medially procurved and weakly sclerotized anterior folds (vs anterior folds relatively straight and strongly sclerotized medially) (Fig. 2).

Female. Holotype: total length 8.21; carapace 3.30 long, 2.65 wide; abdomen 4.90 long, 3.01 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.20, ALE 0.14, PME 0.15, PLE 0.17, AME–AME 0.05, AME–ALE 0.02, PME–PME 0.13, PME–PLE 0.08, ALE–PLE 0.03; posterior eye row procurved. Leg measurements: I 8.64 (2.66, 1.39, 2.03, 1.45, 1.11), II 7.81 (2.40, 1.45, 1.65, 1.30, 1.01), III 7.30 (2.00, 1.02, 1.78, 1.50, 1.00), IV 10.60 (2.90, 1.31, 2.49, 2.90, 1.00). Leg spination: I: Fe d2 p1, Ti v2, Mt v1; II: Fe d4 p1 r1, Ti v2, Mt v2; III: Fe d2 p2, Pa p1 r1, Ti d1 p2 r2 v3, Mt d2 p3 r2 v6; IV: Fe d2 p1, Pa r1, Ti p3 r3 v6, Mt d1 p3 r1 v6. Cheliceral promargin with 3 teeth, retromargin with 1 tooth (Fig. 1D, E). Color in alcohol (Fig. 1A, B): carapace yellow-brown; cephalic groove and radial furrow black; fovea distinct, longitudinal. Legs yellow-brown. Abdomen grey, without markings.

Figure 1. 

Allozelotes gyirongensis comb. nov., female A, B habitus, dorsal and ventral view C eye region, dorsal view D chelicerae, ventral view E details of chelicera, ventral view F tarsus IV, claw and claw tuft, lateral view G metatarsus IV, preening brush, ventral view.

Epigyne (Fig. 2). Epigynal plate diamond-shaped. Atrium almost two times wider than long. Septum wide posteriorly, stem almost two times thinner than base. Anterior folds procurved and weakly sclerotized medially, forming hoods posteriorly. Lateral folds form pockets. Copulatory opening large, located anteriorly. Copulatory ducts long, coiled, sclerotized proximally, and membranous distally. Accessory glands fist-shaped. Primary spermathecae small and globular, located at posterolateral part of septum, separated by their own diameter. Secondary spermathecae oval, almost equal to primary spermathecae in size. Fertilization ducts slender, laterally directed.

Figure 2. 

Female genitalia of Allozelotes gyirongensis comb. nov. A, B ventral view C, D dorsal view.

Male. Unknown.

China (Xizang).

The presence of long, snail-shell-shaped, convoluted copulatory ducts, fist-shaped accessory glands, and the secondary spermathecae almost the same size as the primary spermathecae indicate that this species is a member of Allozelotes, rather than Scopoides.

Yin and Peng (1998) placed Allozelotes as a zelotine spider based on the presence of a preening comb on metatarsi III and IV. Azevedo et al. (2017) placed this genus in Zelotinae based on Yin and Peng’s work. However, while examining the type specimens of A. gyirongensis comb. nov., we found a preening brush rather than preening comb on metatarsi III and IV (Fig. 1G) which indicates that Allozelotes is not a member of Zelotinae. Allozelotes is not assigned to any of the known subfamilies of Gnaphosidae (Azevedo et al. 2017; Lin and Li 2020), and it is unplaced here.

Scopoides xizangensis Hu, 2001.

The genus name is in honor of Norman I. Platnick (1951–2020) and his extensive contributions to arachnology; masculine in gender.

Platnickus gen. nov. resembles Allozelotes by the presence of a procurved PER, the presence of one retromarginal tooth, and the presence of a preening brush on metatarsi III and IV, but it can be distinguished by: 1) the slightly curved embolus, directed clockwise (vs embolus strongly curved, directed counterclockwise); 2) the absence of a macrosetae on the tibial apophysis; 3) the short copulatory ducts (vs long, convoluted copulatory ducts); and 4) the presence of long ducts leading to the secondary spermathecae and the secondary spermathecae with many glands.

Platnickus gen. nov. differs from Scopoides by the: 1) presence of a preening brush on metatarsi III and IV; 2) presence of a radix; 3) medially originating embolus (vs basally originating); 4) absence of ventral and dorsal points on the tibial apophysis; 5) copulatory opening located posteriorly (vs located anteriorly); and 6) presence of long ducts leading to the secondary spermathecae and the secondary spermathecae with many glands.

Medium-sized (total length: males = 5.63–7.61; females = 6.32–7.01). Carapace smooth, elongate-ovoid in dorsal view, highest at eye area, widest at coxae II and III. From above, AER straight; PER procurved; PME oblique, flat (Figs 3D, 5C, 7C). Cheliceral promargin with 2 or 3 teeth, retromargin with 1 tooth (Figs 3I, 5E, 7D). Leg spination: I: Fe d2/3 p1/2 r0/1, Ti v2/4, Mt v0/2; II: Fe d2/3 p1/2 r0/1, Ti v3/4, Mt v1/2; III: Fe d2/3 p1/2 r2, Pa p0/1 r1, Ti p3/5 r3/4 v4/5, Mt d1/2 p3 r2/3 v4/6; IV: Fe d2/3 p0/2 r2/3, Pa r1, Ti p3/5 r3/5 v5/6, Mt d1 p3 r3 v5/6. Leg formula: 4123. Female palp with claw (Fig. 5D). Trochanters not notched. Metatarsi III and IV with preening brush (Fig. 3E). Claw on tarsi IV with 8 teeth and claw tuft well developed (Fig. 3F). Anterior lateral spinnerets slightly longer than others, with 5 or 6 enlarged piriform gland spigots (Fig. 3G, H). Color in alcohol (Figs 3A, B, 5A, B, 7A, B): carapace pale or yellow-brown; cephalic groove and radial furrow black; fovea distinct, longitudinal. Legs pale or yellow-brown. Abdomen light grey, with anterior dorsal scutum and 3 pairs of muscle impressions medially.

Figure 3. 

Platnickus xizangensis comb. nov., male A–C habitus, dorsal, ventral, and frontal view D eye region, dorsal view E metatarsus IV, preening brush, ventral view F tarsus IV, claw and claw tuft, lateral view G spigots on anterior lateral spinneret H spinnerets, ventral view I chelicerae, ventral view.

Male palp (Figs 4, 8): femur and patella unmodified. Cymbium pear-shaped, without claw. Basal hematodocha large, well developed. Tibial apophysis pointed, almost length of tibia, located dorsally. Tegulum larger than subtegulum. Conductor ribbon-shaped. Distal tubular membrane present. Median apophysis irregular polygon shaped. Radix elongate. Embolus originates at about 8–9 o’clock, with several ridges, bifurcated or notched distally.

Figure 4. 

Palp of Platnickus xizangensis comb. nov., male A, B prolateral, ventral and retrolateral view D–F expanded palp, prolateral, posterior and retrolateral view G embolus tip.

Figure 5. 

Platnickus xizangensis comb. nov., female A, B habitus, dorsal and ventral view C eye region, dorsal view D left palp, retrolateral view E chelicera, ventral view.

Epigyne. See below (description in P. xizangensis).

Currently Platnickus gen. nov. is not assigned to any of the known subfamilies of Gnaphosidae (Azevedo et al. 2017; Lin and Li 2020); it is unplaced.

China (Xizang, Sichuan).

Platnickus xizangensis (Hu, 2001), P. reni sp. nov., P. wanglangensis (Yuan, Zhao & Zhang, 2019).

Holotype : ♀, China: Xizang Autonomous Region, Linzhi City, 3000 m elev., 10.VIII.1987, F. Zhang leg. Paratype: 3♀ 2♂, same data as holotype, examined.

1♂, China: Xizang Autonomous Region, Bome County, 14.VIII.2002, M. Zhu & F. Zhang leg.

Males resemble P. wanglangensis in having a similar palp, but they can be distinguished by the presence of a curved embolus (vs embolus relatively straight) and the relatively flat median apophysis (vs median apophysis somewhat twisted) (Fig. 4).

Male. Total length 5.63–6.79. One paratype: total length 6.16; carapace 2.58 long, 2.08 wide; abdomen 3.57 long, 2.35 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.18, ALE 0.16, PME 0.13, PLE 0.18, AME–AME 0.05, AME–ALE 0.02, PME–PME 0.10, PME–PLE 0.05, ALE–PLE 0.04. Leg measurements: I 6.52 (1.93, 1.02, 1.55, 1.12, 0.90), II 6.26 (1.80, 0.97, 1.52, 1.09, 0.88), III 5.57 (1.58, 0.76, 1.23, 1.19, 0.81), IV 7.61 (2.07, 1.06, 1.75, 1.79, 0.94). Leg spination: I: Fe d3 p2 r1, Ti v4, Mt v2; II: Fe d3 p2 r1, Ti v4, Mt v2; III: Fe d3 p2 r2, Pa p1 r1, Ti p5 r4 v5, Mt d2 p3 r2 v6; IV: Fe d3 p2 r2, Pa r1, Ti p5 r5 v6, Mt d1 p3 r3 v6. Cheliceral promargin with 2 teeth. Color in alcohol (Fig. 3A, B): carapace and legs light brown.

Palp (Fig. 4). Conductor ribbon-shaped. Median apophysis relatively flat and long, almost 1/2 length of bulb. Embolus broad, width/length ratio nearly 1/2, enwrapped by elongated radix. Embolus tip bifurcated, with many embolar denticles posteriorly.

Female. Total length 6.32–7.01. Holotype: total length 6.75; carapace 2.89 long, 2.21 wide; abdomen 3.81 long, 2.58 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.19, ALE 0.17, PME 0.16, PLE 0.18, AME–AME 0.04, AME–ALE 0.02, PME–PME 0.10, PME–PLE 0.07, ALE–PLE 0.02. Leg measurements: I 6.03 (1.78, 0.90, 1.51, 1.03, 0.81), II 5.57 (1.69, 0.91, 1.37, 0.84, 0.76), III 5.19 (1.50, 0.75, 1.06, 1.15, 0.73), IV 7.38 (2.01, 1.00, 1.74, 1.75, 0.88). Leg spination: I: Fe d3 p2, Ti v3, Mt v2; II: Fe d3 p2 r1, Ti v3, Mt v2; III: Fe d3 p2 r2, Pa p1 r1, Ti p4 r4 v5, Mt d2 p3 r2 v6; IV: Fe d3 p2 r2, Pa r1, Ti p4 r5 v6, Mt d1 p3 r3 v6. Chelicerae (Fig. 5E) as in male. Color in alcohol (Fig. 5A, B) as in male.

Epigyne (Fig. 6). Epigynal plate irregularly hexagon-shaped, width/length ratio almost 7/5, with large atrium. Anterior folds M-shaped, forming hoods posteriorly. Lateral folds form pockets antero-laterally. Septum wide posteriorly, stem almost 3 times thinner than base. Copulatory opening large, distinct, located posteriorly. Copulatory ducts well sclerotized and short. Primary spermathecae large, peanut-shell-shaped. Secondary spermathecae with long ducts and many glands. Bennett’s gland long, oval, with constriction medially. Fertilization ducts laterally directed.

Figure 6. 

Female genitalia of Platnickus xizangensis comb. nov. A, C ventral view B, D dorsal view.

China (Xizang).

Holotype : ♂, China: Sichuan Prov., Barkam City, Mount Zhangqia, 3100 m elev., 27.VII.1999, G. Ren leg.

The species is named after the collector Prof. Guodong Ren (Hebei University, Baoding, China).

The male resembles P. xizangensis in having a similar palp, but it can be distinguished by the presence of embolar base process (EP1 and EP2), the notched embolus tip (vs bifid), the spoon-shaped conductor in retrolateral view (vs ribbon shaped), and the relatively short median apophysis, almost 1/3 length of bulb (vs relatively long, almost 1/2 length of bulb) (Figs 4, 8).

Male. total length 5.71; carapace 3.38 long, 2.33 wide; abdomen 4.13 long, 2.27 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.18, ALE 0.17, PME 0.14, PLE 0.19, AME–AME 0.08, AME–ALE 0.03, PME–PME 0.10, PME–PLE 0.08, ALE–PLE 0.05. Leg measurements: I 8.86 (2.57, 1.33, 2.17, 1.59, 1.20), II 8.15 (2.37, 1.28, 1.94, 1.47, 1.09), III 7.39 (2.11, 1.05, 1.62, 1.60, 1.01), IV 10.62 (2.89, 1.39, 2.34, 2.90, 1.10). Leg spination: I: Fe d2 p1, Ti v2; II: Fe d2 p1, Ti v3, Mt v1; III: Fe d2 p1 r2, Pa r1, Ti p3 r3 v4, Mt d1 p3 r3 v4; IV: Fe d2 r3, Pa r1, Ti p3 r3 v6, Mt d1 p3 r3 v6. Cheliceral promargin with 3 teeth (Fig. 7D). Color in alcohol (Fig. 7A, B): carapace and legs yellow-brown.

Figure 7. 

Platnickus reni sp. nov., male A, B habitus, dorsal and ventral view C eye region, dorsal view D chelicera, ventral view.

Palp (Fig. 8). Conductor spoon-shaped in retrolateral view. Median apophysis relatively short, almost 1/3 length of bulb. Subtegulum slender anteriorly. Embolus twisted distally, with several ridges that form processes (EP1 and EP2). Embolus tip notched.

Figure 8. 

Palp of Platnickus reni sp. nov., male A, B prolateral, ventral and retrolateral view D–F expanded palp (BH is broken), prolateral, anterior and retrolateral view G embolus tip.

Female. Unknown.

China (Sichuan).

Holotype : ♂, China: Sichuan Province, Pingwu County, Wanglang Nature Reserve, Zhugencha, Baisha Valley, 32°52.729′N, 104°02.779′E, 2948 m elev., 15.V.2018, Z, Zhang et al. leg., not examined.

Males resemble P. xizangensis in having a similar palp, but they can be distinguished by the presence of a relatively straight embolus (vs relatively curved embolus) and the relatively twisted median apophysis (vs median apophysis relatively flat) (Fig. 4).

Male. See Yuan et al. (2019).

The illustrations and descriptions by Yuan et al. (2019: 22, fig. 16) show the same characteristics as in Platnickus gen. nov. For example, 1) the procurved posterior eye row; 2) the presence of three promarginal teeth and one retromarginal cheliceral tooth; 3) the presence of a radix; 4) the medially originating embolus with several ridges; 5) the irregular polygon-shaped median apophysis; and 6) the dorsally located tibial apophysis. These characters indicate that this species should be placed in Platnickus gen. nov.

China (Sichuan).