Geogarypus klarae Novák & Harvey 2018, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Novák, János
name: Harvey, Mark S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Pseudoscorpiones
Geogarypidae
Geogarypus
Geogarypus klarae

description: Geogarypus klarae sp. nov.
(Figs 2A‒K)
Type material. Holotype: ♂ (HNHM Pseud-1991; Fig. 2A), Port Moresby [9°28ʹS, 147°09ʹE], Brown River, Papua New Guinea, 17 Aug. 1968, leg. János Balogh & Imre Loksa (in good condition). Paratype: 1 ♂ (HNHM Pseud-1992), Port Moresby, Brown River, Papua New Guinea, 17 Aug. 1968, leg. János Balogh & Imre Loksa (in good condition, right chelicera and both pedipalps dissected).
Etymology. This species is named after Dr Klára Dózsa-Farkas, the supervisor of the first author during his Ph.D. studies.
Distribution. Southern Papua New Guinea.
Diagnosis. Anterior half of carapace dark brown, with small light areas behind the eyes. Posterior part of carapace dark brown at the edges, with a large, concave, yellowish-brown area in the middle and a small, darker, triangular spot in its middle. Pedipalp trochanter white. No prolateral constriction on hand at base of fingers. Fixed finger homodentate, teeth strongly curved backwards and well separated. Trichobothrium it at level of ist, ib opposite est. Movable finger with st midway between t and sb. See Remarks for comparisons with other species from the region.
Description. Anterior half of carapace dark brown, with small light areas behind the eyes. Posterior part of carapace dark brown at edges, with a large, concave, yellowish-brown area in the middle and a small, darker, triangular spot in its middle. Pedipalp segments dark brown, except the trochanter white. Legs essentially yellowish-brown, the proximal half of patella, tibia and metatarsus dark brown. Tergites basically yellowish brown, with dark brown pattern; tergites I‒X with two lateral brown spots, which are connected by a dark band running on anterior half of the tergites in tergites III and VI‒X, tergite XI entirely brown. Tergites I‒II with a larger and elongated dark spot in the middle. Tergite III with no spot in the middle. Tergites IV‒IX with two dark spots in their middle region. Sternites yellowish-brown, IV‒X with dark brown medial spots.
Carapace. Sub-triangular, with 4 corneate eyes and cucullus. Covered with star-shaped granules and small acuminate setae (Fig. 2B), including 8‒10 near posterior margin, and 2 small and 2 longer acuminate setae near anterior margin (Fig. 2C). Two pairs of slit-like lyrifissures in posterior third and one pair in ocular region. Anterior transverse furrow well-developed, posterior furrow weak and situated sub-basally.
Chelicera (Fig. 2D). Hand with 5 acuminate setae and one acuminate subdistal seta on movable finger. Three small and slightly retrorse subterminal teeth on fixed finger; only 1 tooth clearly seen on movable finger, but others might be present. Galea of female without rami. Rallum of 1 smooth blade. Serrula exterior with 18 blades, distal blade enlarged, straight and pointed, the basal 2 enlarged and hooked (Fig. 2E).
Pedipalp (Fig. 2F). All articles granulate, except fingers, which have a weak granulation in their basal part. Vestitural setae acuminate, some of them weakly bifurcate at terminal end (Figs 2G, H). Dorsal face of patella with 4 lyrifissures near the pedicel and 1 at distal margin. Prolateral face of trochanter rounded. Fixed chelal finger with 25‒28 spaced teeth, which are pointed and backwards-curved in distal half, pointed and retrorse in proximal half, the basal ones flattened, 12‒14 accessory teeth on prolateral side, in distal half of finger between et and isb (Fig. 2I). Retrolateral face of fixed finger with 10 pit-like structures between ist and esb. Movable finger with 33‒36 slightly spaced teeth, the first 10‒12 pointed and retrorse, the following ones rounded and becoming flattened in proximal third. Retrolateral side of movable finger with 3 pit-like structures between sb and t. Nodus ramosus not discernible. Prolateral face of hand near base of fixed finger with 1 long, straight spine. Hand without prolateral constriction. Movable finger slightly longer than hand with pedicel. Fixed finger with eight trichobothria; it at level of ist; ib opposite to est. Movable with four trichobothria; st midway between t and sb.
Opisthosoma. Pleural membrane irregularly striate with sporadic acuminate vestitural setae. Chaetotaxy of tergites I‒XI (number of lyrifissures in parentheses): 8 (2): 8 (4): 8‒10 (6): 8‒10 (6): 8‒10 (6‒8): 12 (6‒8): 10 (6‒ 8): 12 (4‒6): 10 (8‒10): 8‒10 (6‒8): 8 (6). Chaetotaxy of sternites IV‒XI (number of lyrifissures in parentheses): 12 (2): 12 (2): 14 (4): 16 (4): 12 (4‒6): 12 (4): 10 (6): 2. Tergite XII with 2 small setae; sternite XII without setae. Vestitural setae of tergites and sternites all acuminate. Median setae of sternites show no differences from the other setae. No tactile setae on tergite and sternite XI. Surface of tergites granulated, sternites simple. Male genital region: sternite II with 4 microsetae and two lyrifissures, no microsetae around genital opening on sternite III. Ejaculatory canal atrium, lateral apodeme and lateral rod generally similar to those illustrated by Harvey (1986: fig. 12), but only weakly visible.
Coxal region. Pedipalpal coxa with 1 long and 1 short setae on anterior face, plus a further 15‒18 small setae. Coxae I‒IV with setal formula 10‒12: 14‒16: 17‒20: 20‒25.
Legs (Figs 2J, K). Diplotarsate and without tactile setae. Surface mostly granulate. Claws simple. Arolia slightly longer than claws.
Dimensions (in mm, ratios in parentheses). Body 1.77‒1.82; carapace 0.64‒0.66/0.75‒0.77 (0.83‒0.88×). Chelicera 0.16‒0.17/0.09‒0.10, movable finger 0.12. Pedipalpal trochanter 0.27‒0.29/0.21‒0.23 (1.25‒1.28×); femur 0.72‒0.73/0.19 (3.78‒3.85×); patella 0.50‒0.52/0.18‒0.20 (2.55‒2.89×). Chela (with pedicel) 1.17‒1.20 (3.87‒3.90×); pedicel 0.05‒0.06; hand 0.52‒0.53/0.30‒0.31 (1.71‒1.73×); fingers 0.64‒0.65. Leg I trochanter 0.16/ 0.11‒0.15 (1.07‒0.45×); basifemur 0.30‒0.31/0.09‒0.10 (3.02‒3.43×); patella 0.18‒0.21/0.10 (1.81‒2.08×); tibia 0.21‒0.23/0.08 (2.63‒2.88×); basifemur 0.12‒0.14/0.05 (2.41‒2.79×); patella 0.13‒0.14/0.03‒0.04 (3.54‒4.33×). Leg IV trochanter 0.23‒0.24/0.13‒0.15 (1.53‒1.84×); basifemur 0.10‒0.13/0.10 (1.05‒1.32×); patella 0.41‒0.43/ 0.15‒0.17 (2.53‒2.73×); tibia 0.29‒0.33/0.09‒0.10 (3.22‒3.31×); metatarsus 0.19/0.06 (3.17×); tarsus 0.17/0.04 (4.25×).
Remarks. The new species can be distinguished from G. muchmorei sp. nov. by the colour pattern of the carapace, the shape of the chela and the chelal dentition. It differs from all other described Geogarypus species by the following combination of characters: the carapace coloration, the white trochanter and the strongly curved teeth on the fixed chelal finger. It can also be differentiated from the Asian species G. sagittatus, G. asiaticus, G. heterodentatus and G. nepalensis by the shape of the chelal hand, as it lacks a prolateral constriction at the base of the fingers (cf. Beier 1957, 1965, 1974). In addition, it can be differentiated from G. angulatus and G. exochus by the shape of the chela, and from G. connatus Harvey, 1986 by the diplotarsate legs (Harvey 1986). It is not possible to separate it from G. tenuis Chamberlin, 1930 as the holotype is a tritonymph (Harvey 1986). The new species resembles G. taylori Harvey, 1986 in the strongly curved teeth of the fixed chelal finger and the coloration of the carapace, but differs in the white pedipalpal trochanter and in having trichobothrium it at the level of ist or slightly distal to ist (cf. Harvey 1986). The new species is most similar to G. rhantus Harvey, 1981 from north-eastern Australia, but differs in the colour of the carapace, the brown pedicel of the pedipalpal femur (which is white in G. rhantus), in having 2+2 setae near the anterior edge of the carapace (3+ 3 in G. rhantus, according to Harvey 1981: fig. 1C), in having the prolateral face of the pedipalpal trochanter evenly rounded (more rectangular in G. rhantus according to Harvey 1981: fig. 1A), and the teeth of the fixed chelal finger strongly curved backwards (only weakly so in G. rhantus).
description: Published as part of Novák, János & Harvey, Mark S., 2018, New species and records of the pseudoscorpion genus Geogarypus (Pseudoscorpiones: Geogarypidae) from India, Sri Lanka and New Guinea, pp. 417-427 in Zootaxa 4394 (3) on pages 421-423, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4394.3.7, http://zenodo.org/record/1199826