Mystaria irmatrix Honiball Lewis & Dippenaar-Schoeman 2014, sp. n.
Creators: name: Honiball Lewis, Allet S.
name: Dippenaar-Schoeman, Ansie S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2014
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Thomisidae
Mystaria
Mystaria irmatrix

description: Mystaria irmatrix sp. n.
Figs 14–16, 49–52, 117
Type material: Holotype: ♀, MOZAMBIQUE: Maputo City, Marracuene, Marracuene Lodge [25°53'S, 32°30’E], beating shrubs in riverine forest, 1 December 2007, R. Lyle & R. Fourie (NCA 2009/4616a).
Paratypes: MOZAMBIQUE: Maputo City, 4 ♂ (collected with holotype ♀), Marracuene, Marracuene Lodge [25°53'S, 32°30’E], beating shrubs in riverine forest, 1 December 2007, R. Lyle & R. Fourie (NCA 2009/4616b). Gaza Province, 1 ♂, 1 juvenile ♀, Xai-Xai, Montego's Lodge [25°03’S, 33°38’E], beating shrubs on dune forest, 2 December 2007. R. Lyle & R. Fourie (NCA 2009/4614); 1 ♂, 1 juvenile ♀, Chidenguile, Paraiso de Chidenguele [24°54'S, 34°11'E], beating shrubs in dune forest, 15 December 2007. R. Lyle, R. Fourie & C. Haddad (NCA 2009/ 4615). SOUTH AFRICA: Eastern Cape Province, 1 ♂, East London, Pineapple Research Station [32°59’S, 27°54’E], found on plants, 2 July 1977, A.S. Dippenaar-Schoeman (NCA 88/606); 1 ♂, same locality sweeping grasslands, 7 December 1977, A.S. Dippenaar-Schoeman (NCA 78/29); 1 ♀, Mkhambati Nature Reserve [31°21’S, 29°51’E], collected from butterfly traps in forest, 27 January 2008, M. Hamer (NCA 2009/5037). KwaZulu-Natal Province, 2 ♀, 1 ♂, Mkuze Nature Reserve [27°36’S, 32°00’E], yellow pantraps in Terminalia sericea woodland tree beating, 21 January–21 March 2005, M. Hamer (NCA 2006/76, 2006/273, 2006/298); 1 ♀, Empangeni, University of Zululand [28°44’S, 31°53’E], 17 September 1975, P. Reavell (NM 23344); same locality, 1 ♀, hanging on a silk thread on Acacia sieberiana with bee in its fangs, 20 November 1981, P. Reavell (NM 14064); 1 ♀, Tembe Elephant Park [27°01’S, 32°24’E], sand forest beating, 15 March 2003, A.S. Honiball (NCA 2003/ 1462); 1 ♀, Phinda Game Reserve [27°43’S, 32°03’E], tree beating, 22 March 2004, S. Lovell (NCA 2004/685).
Etymology. Named after the mother of the first author. Noun in apposition.
Diagnosis. Female can be recognised by colour patterns on body (Fig. 14), Both sexes with metatarsi and/or tarsi IV dark brown to black (Figs 15, 16), other legs yellow-orange. Epigyne with atrium rim very narrow teardrop-shaped; small intromittent orifices open antero-laterally (Fig. 51). Male palp RTA with dark, med length, narrow tip (Fig. 50); VTA slender, curving at tip (Fig. 49).
Description. Female. Size, measurements (n = 6). TL: 3.51 (3.15–4.14); CL: 1.27 (1.06–1.46); CW: 1.16 (1.05–1.34); CI: 1.09 (0.98–1.28); CH: 0.83 (0.87–0.96); CLL: 0.25 (0.19–0.30); MOQ-L: 0.26 (0.25–0.30). Colour. Carapace varies from orange with black line around postero-lateral border (Fig. 15), with or without two dark patches over LE region (Fig. 14) to blackish-copper specimens, often with orange triangular patch on clypeus, colour and body patterns may vary between individuals; abdomen very pale with dark, longitudinal central band that may expand laterally, or with two darker patches laterally; ventrally pale with pale blue stria. Carapace. Smooth. Sternum. SL: 0.52; SW: 0.56; SI: 0.93. Eye s. Eye measurements: AME–AME: 0.26; ALE–AME: 0.35; AME–AME/AME–ALE: 0.73; PME–PME: 0.42; PLE–PME: 0.32; PME–PME/PME–PLE: 1.30; ALE/AME: 1.38; PLE/PME: 0.78; MOQ-AW/MOQ-PW: 0.61; MOQ-L/MOQ-W: 0.43; Clyp/AME–AME: 0.96. Legs. Covered with fine, inconspicuous setae, spiniform setae present dorsally on femora and tibiae; leg formula: II:I:IV:III; leg measurements: leg I—Fe 0.82, Pat 0.33, Tib 0.66, Mt 0.57, Ta 0.41, total 2.78; II—Fe 0.92, Pat 0.32, Tib 0.72, Mt 0.61, Ta 0.42, total 2.98; III—Fe 0.69, Pat 0.27, Tib 0.42, Mt 0.39, Ta 0.28, total 2.04; IV—Fe 0.78, Pat 0.29, Tib 0.57, Mt 0.49, Ta 0.36, total 2.49. Abdomen. Round; AL: 2.24; AW: 2.16; AI: 1.06. Epigyne. Atrium rim as in (Fig. 51); intromittent canals as in (Fig. 52).
Male. Size, measurements (n = 3). TL: 2.76 (2.50–3.13); CL: 1.19 (1.12–1.34); CW: 1.06 (0.96–1.20); CI: 1.13 (1.10–1.16); CH: 0.68 (0.62–0.75); CLL: 0.25 (0.22–0.28); MOQ-L: 0.26 (0.20–0.31). Differs from females as follows: Colour. Body dorsally orange to copper-brown or blackish-brown (Fig. 16); in light coloured specimens abdomen with central black patterns dorsally, ventrally white with blue striae; in dark coloured specimens abdomen ventrally blue metallic colour, striae decorated with white dots. Carapace. Sharply sloping anteriorly. Sternum. SL: 0.45; SW: 0.48; SI: 0.94. Eyes. Eye measurements: AME–AME: 0.24; ALE–AME: 0.32; AME–AME/AME–ALE: 0.74; PME–PME: 0.37; PLE–PME: 0.29; PME–PME/PME–PLE: 1.30; ALE/AME: 1.36; PLE/PME: 0.77; MOQ-AW/MOQ-PW: 0.63; MOQ-L/MOQ-W: 0.41; Clyp/AME–AME: 1.05. Legs. Fewer spiniform setae on femora and tibiae, leg formula: I:II:IV:III; leg measurements: leg I—Fe 0.93, Pat 0.29, Tib 0.81, Mt 0.62, Ta 0.45, total 3.10; II—Fe 0.94, Pat 0.28, Tib 0.81, Mt 0.56, Ta 0.44, total 3.03; III—Fe 0.62, Pat 0.24, Tib 0.52, Mt 0.35, Ta 0.29, total 2.02; IV—Fe 0.71, Pat 0.21, Tib 0.53, Mt 0.43, Ta 0.32, total 2.21. Abdomen. Round with scutum; AL: 1.56; AW: 1.33; AI: 1.17. Palp. VTA and RTA almost same length; VTA very delicate (Fig. 50), embolus long (Fig. 49).
Natural history. Sampled from riverine, sand, dune and coastal forest as well as woodlands and grasslands. Samples were found in trees such as Terminalia sericea and Acacia sieberiana. Most adults were sampled between September and March, while juveniles were sampled in December. One of the specimens sampled was hanging on its own silk thread from a tree while feeding on a bee (P. Reavell, pers. comm.).
Distribution. Mozambique and eastern parts of South Africa (Fig. 117).
description: Published as part of Honiball Lewis, Allet S. & Dippenaar-Schoeman, Ansie S., 2014, Revision of the spider genus Mystaria Simon, 1895 (Araneae: Thomisidae) and the description of a new genus from the Afrotropical region, pp. 101-144 in Zootaxa 3873 (2) on pages 119-120, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.3873.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/4948115