Gongylidioides microdontus Irfan, Zhang & Peng, sp. n.
Creators: name: Irfan, Muhammad
name: Zhou, Gu-Chun
name: Peng, Xian-Jin
name: Zhang, Zhi-Sheng
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Linyphiidae
Gongylidioides
Gongylidioides microdontus

description: Gongylidioides microdontus Irfan, Zhang & Peng, sp. n.
(小ù圆be)
Figures 102–104, 312
Types. Holotype ♂, CHINA, Hubei Prov.: Badong Co., Yanduhe Town, Sendziyuan Vill., 31.3406°N, 110.4131°E, 1320 m, 26.IV.2016, W. Liu et al. leg. Paratypes. 1♂ 2♀, with same data as for holotype.
Etymology. The specific epithet is derived from the Latin noun “microdontus ” meaning “small teeth” and referring to the retrolateral tibial apophysis with small teeth in male palp.
Diagnosis. The male of Gongylidioides microdontus sp. n. resembles that of G. ensis sp. n. in having the similar disc-shaped radix and the long, sclerotized, helical-shaped embolus (Figs 91A–D; Figs 88A–D), but can be distinguished by the tibia with reterolateral tibial apophysis L-shaped in ventral view in G. ensis sp. n. (Figs 91B–D), vs. sword-shaped retrodorsal margin with teeth in G. microdontus sp. n. (Figs 88B–D); retrodorsal tibial apophysis absent in G. microdontus sp. n. (Figs 91B–D), vs. present in G. ensis sp. n. (Figs 88B–D); suprategular membrane tongue-shaped tapering towards tip, extending above to the apex of cymbium in G. microdontus sp. n. (Figs 91A, B, D), vs. slightly curved, almost equal to the apex of cymbium in G. s ensis p. n. (Figs 88A, B, D). Female of G. microdontus sp. n. resembles those of G. ensis sp. n. with long copulatory ducts forming pair of large round loops anteriorly and the dorsal plate resembles those of G. microdontus in epigyne (Figs 92A–D; Figs 89A–C; Tu & Li, 2006, fig. 2J), and can be distinguished by the copulatory ducts forming one loop before joining the spermathecae in G. microdontus sp. n. (Figs 92C–E), vs. forming two loops before joining the spermathecae in G. ensis sp. n. (Figs 89B–D); spermathecae pointing towards the anterior end in G. microdontus sp. n. (Figs 92B, C), vs. pointing towards the posterior end of the epigyne in G. ensis sp. n. (Figs 89B, C).
Description. Male (holotype, Figs 93A, B): Total length:2.13.Carapace0.93long,0.78wide,cephalic region elevated, ocular quad narrow, yellowish brown, fovea, cervical and radial grooves distinct. Clypeus 0.25 high. Chelicerae with five promarginal and six retromarginal teeth. Sternum as wide as long, yellowish brown with microsetae. Eyes: AER recurved, PER straight, slightly wider than AER. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.05, ALE 0.07, PME 0.06, PLE 0.06, AME–AME 0.02, PME– PME 0.10, AME–ALE, 0.02, PME–PLE 0.04, AME– PME 0.06, ALE–ALE 0.27, PLE–PLE 0.33, ALE–PLE 0.01. Length of legs: I 3.32 (0.96, 1.11, 0.78, 0.47), II 2.94 (0.84, 0.98, 0.69, 0.43), III 2.35 (0.71, 0.66, 0.60, 0.38), IV 3.20 (0.86, 1.09, 0.80, 0.45). Tibial spine formula: 2- 2-1-1. TmI 0.31 and TmIV 0.24. Opisthosoma 1.28 long, 0.83 wide, oval, dusky grey, dorsally with greenish band, lateral side with longitudinal greenish band, ventral side dusky grey with greenish green band.
Palp (Figs 91A–D): Femur unmodified, as long as both patella and tibia. Patella as long as tibia, slightly curved mesally. Tibia with one reterolateral and one dorsal trichobothria; reterolateral tibial apophysis (RTA) long, sclerotized, basally with teeth in retrolateral view, dorsal tibial apophysis (DTA) longer than wide, half the length of retrolateral tibial apophysis, covered with spines; cymbium unmodified, hoof-shaped; paracymbium (PC) sclerotized, U-shaped, apical tip hook-shaped; suprategular membrane transparent (STM)tongue-shaped, longer than wide extending above the apex of cymbium; tegulum (T) with a transparent bifurcated protegulum (PT); distal suprategular apophysis (DSA) stout. Radix (R) sclerotized, disc-shaped; tailpiece (TP) long, slightly curved with blunt tip, pointing towards the lateral margin of cymbium; lamella (L) translucent, tapering towards the tip; embolus (E) sclerotized, long, helical-shaped, extending above the apex of cymbium.
Female (one of paratypes, Figs 92C, D): Total length: 2.09. Carapace 0.87 long, 0.69 wide, yellowish green, cephalic region slightly elevated, fovea, cervical and radial grooves distinct. Clypeus 0.21 high. Chelicerae with five promarginal and six retromarginal teeth. Sternum as wide as long, brownish grey with microsetae. Eyes: AER recurved, PER straight, slightly wider than AER. Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.05, ALE 0.07, PME 0.08, PLE 0.07, AME–AME 0.02, PME–PME 0.06, AME–ALE, 0.02, PME–PLE 0.03, AME–PME 0.04, ALE–ALE 0.25, PLE–PLE 0.29, ALE–PLE contiguous. Length of legs: I 3 (0.78, 1.11, 0.69, 0.42), II 2.35 (0.76, 0.67, 0.54, 0.38), III 2 (0.69, 0.56, 0.41, 0.34), IV 2.89 (0.79, 1.02, 0.67, 0.41). Tibial spine formula: 2-2-1-1. TmI 0.26 and TmIV 0.19. Opisthosoma 1.21 long, 0.81 wide, oval, dusky grey, dorsally with green band, ventro-laterally with longitudinal greenish band, ventral side dusky grey with broad greenish band.
Epigyne (Figs 93A–E): Epigynal plate as long as wide; ventral plate (VP) wider than long; copulatory opening (CO) located in atrium ventro-mesally at the junction of dorsal and ventral plate; dorsal plate (DP) heart-shaped, tip with depressed area laterally; copulatory ducts (CD) long, forming pair of broad loops anteriorly, before entering the spermathecae; spermathecae (S) globular, present dorsolaterally; fertilization ducts (FD) short, extending mesally.
Distribution. Known only from the type locality (Hubei Province, Fig. 312).
description: Published as part of Irfan, Muhammad, Zhou, Gu-Chun, Peng, Xian-Jin & Zhang, Zhi-Sheng, 2025, Survey of Linyphiidae spiders (Arachnida: Araneae) from some Oriental Regions of China, pp. 1-248 in Megataxa 15 (1) on pages 70-73, DOI: 10.11646/megataxa.15.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/14985176