Draconarius laosensis Hoang, Nophaseud & Jäger, 2025, spec. nov.
Creators: name: Hoang, Quang Duy
name: Nophaseud, Liphone
name: Jäger, Peter
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Agelenidae
Draconarius
Draconarius laosensis

description: Draconarius laosensis spec. nov.
Figs 1–5, 8, 10–11
Type material. Holotype male: LAOS: Vientiane Province: west Vang Vieng, Tham Khan, 18°55'32.52"N, 102°25'8.04"E, 314 m a.s.l., inside cave, by day, by hand, 27 December 2023, Q.D. Hoang leg. (VNMN). Paratypes: 2 females, with same data as for holotype (VNMN), 1 male, west Vang Vieng, Tham Soksay, 18°5523.30"N, 102°23'8.71"E, 273 m a.s.l., inside cave, by day, by hand, 7 Dec. 2023, C. Kennedy leg. (SMF); 1 female, with same data as previous specimen, except for: Tham Puna, 18°55'33.16"N, 102°22'56.60"E, 280 m a.s.l., 9 October 2024 (SMF); 2 females, north Vang Vieng, west Ban Phoxay, Tham Kieo, 19°0'48.00"N, 102°25'54.12"E, 370 m a.s.l., inside cave, by hand, 2 Dec. 2012, P. Jäger leg. (SMF).
Additional material examined. 1 immature female, with same data as for holotype (VNMN); 1 juvenile female, with same data as for holotype, except for: P. Jäger & S. Packheiser leg. 24 Jul. 2018 (SMF).
Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from the type locality; adjective.
Diagnosis. Males of the new species (Figs 1B–C, 2A–C) resemble those of D. linzhiensis (Hu, 2001) (Li et al. 2019: fig. 3A–C) in having a similar conformation of RTA and LTA, short cymbial furrow, conductor with jagged margin and embolus without coil, but it differs from the latter by the following characteristics: patellar apophysis thin and pointed tip (Fig. 1B–C), relatively blunt and wide tip in D. linzhiensis (Li et al. 2019, fig. 3B–C); RTA nearly as half as tibia in the new species and swollen medially (Fig. 1C), more than half tibia length and slightly concave in D. linzhiensis (Li et al. 2019, fig. 3C); conductor blunt (Fig. 1B–C) vs. pointed tip in D. linzhiensis (Li et al. 2019, fig. 3B, C), embolus base narrow at 5 o’clock (Fig. 1B) while wide and at 6 o’clock in D. linzhiensis (Li et al. 2019, fig. 3B). Females of the new species (Figs 3A–D, 4A–D) are similar to that of D. episomos Wang, 2003 (Wang 2003, fig. 30B) in having a small atrium situated near epigastric furrow, similar shape and position of epigynal teeth, but can be distinguished from the latter by: copulatory ducts wide and long, running parallel anteriorly and connecting spermathecae posteriorly, extremely short in D. episomos (Wang 2003, fig. 30B); spermathecal heads invisible in the new species, visible in D. episomos, (Wang 2003, fig. 30B).
Description. Male (holotype). Measurements: Total length 8.41. Prosoma length 4.23, width 2.81. Opisthosoma length 4.18, width 2.24. Prosoma dorsally yellowish brown covered by sparse short grey setae, with a conspicuous longitudinal fovea (Fig. 1A). Sternum yellowish brown covered by some grey setae. Chelicerae brown, with 3 promarginal, 2 retromarginal teeth and 1 escort seta. Opisthosoma yellowish brown covered with dense long grey setae and with some lighter inverted chevrons, dorsally (Fig. 1A). Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.09, ALE 0.16, PME 0.17, PLE 0.18; AME–AME 0.07, AME–ALE 0.04, AME–PME 0.06, ALE–PLE 0.01, PME–PME 0.06, PME–PLE 0.09. Leg measurements: I 22.94 (5.64, 7.29, 6.58, 3.43); II 19.41 (5.05, 5.88, 5.59, 2.89); III 17.39 (4.54, 5.21, 5.50, 2.14); IV 22.49 (5.75, 6.50, 7.43, 2.81). Leg formula I–IV–II–III.
Palp (Figs 1B, C): Yellowish brown. Patellar apophysis thin, pointed and ventrad (Figs 1B, C), RTA nearly half of tibia length, LTA about ¼ of RTA length (Fig. 1C), cymbial furrow nearly half cymbium length, conductor simple and wide, lamella with jagged margin (Figs 1B, C), embolus stout and without any coils, slightly bent at tip, embolus arising in 6 o’clock position, turning retrolateral first, and then prolaterally and distally, median apophysis elongated (Figs 1B, C).
Female (paratype from Tham Khan). As in male, except for: Measurements: Total length 9.83. Prosoma length 4.28, width 2.90. Opisthosoma length 4.55, width 3.02. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.08, ALE 0.17, PME 0.16, PLE 0.15; AME–AME 0.08, AME–ALE 0.06, AME–PME 0.07, ALE–PLE 0.01, PME–PME 0.07, PME–PLE 0.11. Leg measurements: I 18.11 (4.67, 6.04, 4.89, 2.51); II 15.30 (4.21, 4.95, 3.97, 2.17); III 14.30 (3.86, 4.47, 4.03, 1.94); IV 18.52 (4.83, 5.78, 5.65, 2.26). Leg formula IV–I–II–III.
Epigyne (Figs 3B–D): Epigyne slightly wider than long; epigynal teeth short, far away from each other; atrium present near epigastric furrow; copulatory ducts wide, long, running parallel anteriorly and connecting to spermathecae posteriorly, touching each other dorsally; spermathecal heads invisible; spermathecal stalks broad, expanded anteriorly; spermathecal bases small and separated.
Variation. Males: Total length: 6.8, prosoma length 3.8, width 2.5. Opisthosoma length 3.1, width 1.9. Females: Total length: 8.1–9.2, prosoma length 3.8–4.3, width 2.5. Opisthosoma length 4.3–4.9, width 3.0. The male from Tham Soksay (Figs 2A–C) exhibits a variation compared to the holotype (Figs 1B–C) as patellar apophysis directed more distad (Fig. 2C). Similarly, the female from Tham Kieo (Figs 4A–D) also shows notable variation compared to specimens from Tham Khan (Figs 3B–D) as epigynal teeth situated more posteriorly (Fig. 4A). Furthermore, although the specimens in this study were collected from different caves, we consider all differences intraspecific variation.
Distribution. Laos (Vientiane Province) (Figs 8, 10, 11).
Natural history. The species has only been found in the caves from Vang Vieng karst, Vientiane Province, Laos, spiders residing on a funnel-webs (Figs 5A–D).
description: Published as part of Hoang, Quang Duy, Nophaseud, Liphone & Jäger, Peter, 2025, Notes on the genus Draconarius Ovtchinnikov, 1999 (Araneae: Agelenidae) with description of two new species from Laos, pp. 555-567 in Zootaxa 5590 (4) on pages 557-561, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5590.4.6, http://zenodo.org/record/14953550