Roquettea carajas Kury & Ferreira, 2012, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Kury, Adriano B.
name: Ferreira, Cláudio P.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2012
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Opiliones
Cosmetidae
Roquettea
Roquettea carajas

description: Roquettea carajas sp. nov.
(Figs. 2–17)
Type material. 3 holotype Ƥ paratype (MNRJ 2289) Brazil, Pará State, Parauapebas, Serra dos Carajás, Serra do Norte, on a plateau with rocky outcrop of iron ore adjacent to well preserved Amazon forest (ca. -6.10° -50.18° ca. 700 m), VII.2003, R. Bittencourt leg. WWF Ecoregion Xingu-Tocantins-Araguaia moist forests (NT0180). Etymology. Species name is a noun in apposition and refers to Serra dos Carajás, the type locality. Description. 3 holotype (MNRJ 2289)
Measurements. CL: 2.59, CW: 4.48; AL: 4.81, AW: 6.16. Appendage measurements in Table 1.
Diagnosis. Eye mound low and narrow (Figs. 3, 17). Mesotergum convex, area I in male armed with a pair of low and wide hemispherical swellings (Figs. 2–3), in female a pair of paramedian blunt tubercles (Figs. 5–6); area III armed with a pair of paramedian thick conical processes, extremely thick in male (Figs. 3, 6). Dorsal crest of Pp Fe strongly convex (Fig. 8). Pp Ta very slender and prismatic in transverse section (Fig. 11). Ventral plate extremely elongate, with a shallow parabolic cleft (Fig. 13), glans as a very long column (Fig. 14).
Dorsum (Figs. 2–3). Dorsal scutum, including armature, smooth, without marked constrictions, with greater width between areas II and III (“beta” shape). Anterior edge of dorsal scutum with cheliceral sockets (protoglyphs) slightly concave, not well defined. Central projection of protoglyphs short and acuminate, lateral projections of protoglyphs very large and blunt, excavated ectally. Carapace a little prominent in lateral view, eye mound low and wide. Mesotergum elevated, scutal area I armed with a pair of convex structures concolorous with background, area III armed with a pair of base inflated paramedian conical processes darker than background, elsewhere unarmed. Lateral border of the dorsal scutum containing a longitudinal row of small granules. Posterior border, free tergites and anal operculum, each containing a transverse row of small granules.
Venter (Fig. 4). Coxae I to IV, stigmatic area and genital operculum granular. Free sternites with a transverse row of granules.
Chelicera (Figs. 2, 17). Ectal and posterior edges of basichelicerite bulla with a rim of small apophyses, the one on ectal-posterior corner the largest.
Pedipalpus (Figs. 8–12). Femur compressed, strongly convex dorsally with a keeled crest (Fig. 8); ventrally with row of 14 setiferous tubercles (Figs. 8, 10). Tibia spatulate (Fig. 12), with mesal edge truncate, but without deep groove; also with ectal-apical expansion bearing five short and thick setiferous tubercles, this expansion opposes to the tarsus, forming a rudimentary chela (Figs. 9–11). Tarsus very slender, prismatic in cross-section (Figs. 9–11).
Legs. Coxae I to IV, with a prolatero-dorsal apophysis (III very small), coxa I with a retrolatero-dorsal apophysis. Tarsal counts: 8(3)-8(3), 16(3)-16(3), 10- 10, x-12
Color (in alcohol). Dorsal scutum, eye mound, free tergites and anal operculum Deep Reddish Brown (centroid 41), spines of area III Strong Brown (centroid 55), tubercles of area I concolorous with the background. Dorsal scutum densely covered with small Yellowish White spots (centroid 92) except for regions close to eye mound, anterior border of carapace and paired circular patches in carapace and areas I to III (around the paramedian armature, if present). Posterior border of scutum and free tergites I and II with a transverse row of small spots of Yellowish White (centroid 92), tergite III with a transverse line of the same color. Coxae, genital segment, free sternites and genital operculum Deep Orange (centroid 51). Metatarsi and tibia I–IV with several lighter rings.
Genitalia (Figs. 13–16). Ventral plate (VP) rectangular elongate, with apical corners rounded and a shallow parabolic cleft on distal margin. Base and apex of equal width (sides sub-parallel) in ventral view. Middle part slightly thicker (in lateral view). VP with 7 pairs of lateral setae forming two groups. (1) basal group with 2 pairs of short and straight setae pointing oblique/proximally; (2) distal group with 5 pairs of long sulcate substraight setae, first proximal pair very short, second proximal pair slightly shorter than the others. Glans columnar elongate, stylus cylindrical with apex compressed forming a flat crest around the opening with a few ventro-distal lobes and spines, dorsal process elongate rectangular truncate.
Female (Figs. 5–7). Measurements: CL: 1.54, CW: 3.17; AL: 3.97, AW: 4.99. Appendage measurements in Table 1. Area I armed with a pair of small tubercles concolorous with background; area III armed with a pair of base inflated spines darker than background, smaller than male. Pedipalpal tibia spatulate, with only a small ectalapical expansion.
Distribution. Known from type locality alone. This is the highest altitude reported of the species of Roquettea.
description: Published as part of Kury, Adriano B. & Ferreira, Cláudio P., 2012, Two new species of Roquettea Mello-Leitão, 1931 from northern Brazil (Opiliones: Laniatores: Cosmetidae), pp. 35-46 in Zootaxa 3328 on pages 38-40, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.214374