Lysiteles falcifer Liu & Zhang, 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Liu, Chang
name: Zhang, Feng
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Thomisidae
Lysiteles
Lysiteles falcifer

description: Lysiteles falcifer sp. nov. (șḛēse)
Figs 2–4
Type material. Holotype ♂ (MHBU-ARA-2022-95-1) from CHINA: Yunnan Province: Lincang City, Shuangjiang County, Mengmeng Town, 23.424°N, 99.865°E, alt. 1969 m, 15 June 2022, Lu Zhang leg.
Paratypes: 1♂, 3♀ (MHBU-ARA-2022-95-2–5), with same data as holotype, but collected by Weihang Wang, Mengjiao Xu and Zhiyong Yang.
Etymology. The specific name comes from the Latin word “ falcifer ”, which means sickle-bearing or scytheholding, reflecting the sickle-shaped embolus; adjective.
Diagnosis. This new species aligns with the diagnostic characteristics of genus Lysiteles Simon, 1985, but can be characterized by the shape of embolus, RTA and copulatory duct, especially the sickle-shaped embolus. This new species resembles Lysiteles bicuspidatus Yu, Li and Jin, 2017 (Yu et al. 2017: 1077, figs 1–2) in having similar tegulum and body color pattern, but can be distinguished from the latter by the sickle-shaped embolus (vs. drill-shaped in L. bicuspidatus) and the non-bifurcate RTA (vs. bifurcate in L. bicuspidatus). It also resembles L. transversus Tang, Yin, Peng, Ubick and Griswold, 2008 (Tang et al. 2008: 36, figs 19 h–i) in having similar atrium and spermathecae, but can be distinguished by the less tapering copulatory ducts (vs. tapering in L. transversus).
Description. Male holotype (Figs 2A, C, E, 3A–E): Measurements. Total length 2.74; carapace 1.38 long, 1.35 wide; opisthosoma 1.56 long, 1.35 wide; clypeus height 0.25. Labium 0.44 long, 0.22 wide. Sternum 0.74 long, 0.66 wide. Diameters and interdistances of eyes: AME 0.09, ALE 0.158, PME 0.09, PLE 0.11; AME–AME 0.15, AME– ALE 0.13, ALE–ALE 0.6, PME–PME 0.22, PME–PLE 0.26, PLE–PLE 0.76, ALE–PLE 0.19. Leg measurements: Ⅰ 5.33 (1.58, 0.58, 1.36, 1.15, 0.66), II 4.45 (1.65, 0.66, 1.44, 1.06, 0.70), III 2.22 (0.10, 0.35, 0.78, 0.58, 0.41), IV 3.12 (0.98, 0.30, 0.78, 0.63, 0.43); leg formula 1243. Coloration in ethanol (Figs. 2A, C, E). Carapace yellow with a pair of paramedian brownish stripes. Chelicerae and eye field blackish brown. Sternum yellow. Legs pale-yellow. Endites and labium yellowish brown. Opisthosoma oval, dorsum off-white, anteriorly with a pair of symmetrical red curved strips, medially with two sets of small white spots, posteriorly with two pairs of large and a pair of small blackish brown transverse stripes; venter pale-yellow, laterally with brown stripes.
Palp (Fig. 3A–C). Bulb simple; tegulum oval; embolus sickle-shaped with spout-shaped apex, thick and straight base, and sharp dorsal process; VTA hook-shaped, curving prolaterally and dorsally at apex; ITA absent; RTA dagger-shaped, curving at apex.
Female (one of the paratypes; MHBU-ARA-2022-95-3) (Figs 2B, D, F, 4A–B): Measurements. Total length 2.77; carapace 1.39 long, 1.42 wide; opisthosoma 1.55 long, 1.62 wide; clypeus height 0.22; labium 0.42 long, 0.24 wide; sternum 0.75 long, 0.66 wide. Diameters and interdistances of eyes: AME 0.10, ALE 0.15, PME 0.08, PLE 0.12; AME–AME 0.16, AME–ALE 0.20, ALE–ALE 0.74, PME–PME 0.26, PME–PLE 0.31, PLE–PLE 0.85, ALE–PLE 0.22. Leg measurements: Ⅰ 4.09 (1.31, 0.44, 1.04, 0.72, 0.58), II 4.35 (1.41, 0.49, 1.09, 0.76, 0.60), III 2.84 (0.90, 0.37, 0.72, 0.47, 0.38), IV 3.03 (1.00, 0.36, 0.73, 0.53, 0.41); leg formula: 2143. Coloration in ethanol. similar to male, but carapace darker, opisthosoma lighter than male; chelicerae and eye field yellowish brown, same as carapace; carapace with wider stripes extending to the lateral margins; opisthosoma medially with two pairs of white stripes.
Epigynum and vulva (Fig. 4A, B). Atrium distinct with arch-shaped hood, copulatory openings originating under sclerotized edge. Copulatory ducts broad and curved in J-shape, almost as wide as half of width of spermathecae, anteriorly with accessory glands; spermathecae pyriform-shaped.
Distribution. China (Yunnan).
description: Published as part of Liu, Chang & Zhang, Feng, 2025, Three new species of crab-spiders (Araneae: Thomisidae) from Yunnan, China, pp. 377-389 in Zootaxa 5632 (2) on pages 378-382, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.5632.2.10, http://zenodo.org/record/15371736