Stygnicranaus Roewer 1913
Creators: name: Orrico, Victor G. D.
name: Kury, Adriano B.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2009
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Opiliones
Cranaidae
Stygnicranaus

description: STYGNICRANAUS ROEWER, 1913   
 Stygnicranaus Roewer, 1913: 423; 1923: 570; Mello- Leitão, 1926: 365; Roewer, 1931: 147; Mello-Leitão,   
KEY TO THE THREE GENERA OF LONGIPALP CRANAIDAE (STYGNICRANAINAE)  
 1. Ocularium very wide (80% the width of carapace), extremely low (barely elevated from carapace); carapace much shorter than abdominal scutum (Figs 20–21)................................................................................. Tryferos Ocularium narrow (about 40–50% the width of carapace). moderately high (at least as high as two eye diameters); carapace only slightly shorter than abdominal scutum (Figs 2–3, 6–7, 14–15).................................................. 2 2. Ocularium with a pair of minute tubercles; all areas of dorsal scutum entirely unarmed; outline of scutum in dorsal view alpha (subrectangular, with the median laterals bulging, widest at area I–II) (Figs 14–15)... Agathocranaus Ocularium with a pair of strong spines; scutal area III with a pair of stout acuminate spines; outline of scutum in dorsal view pyriform, with widest portion at area IV (Figs 2–3, 6–7)............................................. Stygnicranaus   
 1932: 128; Kury, 1995: 32, 2003: 102 (type species Stygnicranaus abnormis Roewer, 1913, by monotypy).   
 Genus diagnosis: Dorsal scutum divided into three areas (original area IV completely fused to area III); outline of scutum attenuate pyriform, mesotergal area armed with a pair of high, divergent, straight spiniform processes, pedipalpal femur completely unarmed, much elongated and pedipalpi tarsi and tibia forming subchela.   
 Included species: Stygnicranaus abnormis Roewer, 1913; Stygnicranaus concolor Kury, 1995; Stygnicranaus alessandroi sp. nov.; and Stygnicranaus poncedeleoni sp. nov.   
 Remarks: The ‘male’ holotype of S. abnormis is actually a female. In this genus, (known) females are   
 KEY TO THE SPECIES OF STYGNICRANAUS   
 1. Lateral border of scutum without clearly marked posterior yellow spot; outline of dorsal scutum widest at middle portion; ocularium without pearly tubercles; free tergite II with a pair of robust paramedian spines; dorsoapical apophysis of coxa IV clearly marked........................................................................................ S. concolor Lateral border of scutum with clearly marked posterior yellow spot; outline of dorsal scutum widest more posteriorly, at area IV; ocularium with pearly tubercles; free tergite II with only a pair of minute granules; dorsoapical apophysis of coxa IV unclear, replaced by group of granules.......................................................................................2. 2. Cluster of pearly tubercles at the side of the carapace absent; hyaline portion of cheliceral sockets without pearly tubercles........................................................................................................................... S. abnormis Cluster of pearly tubercles at the side of the carapace present; hyaline portion of cheliceral sockets with pearly tubercles.............................................................................................................................................3. 3. Femur IV armed proximally with small spines; anterior border of scutum with two large spines at pedipalpus level;   
 scutum without any whitish spot; scutum densely covered with numerous dark irregular spots..... S. alessandroi Femur IV armed proximally with small pearly tubercles; anterior border of scutum with three small spines at pedipalpus level; scutum with inverted Y-shaped whitish spot formed by smaller independent units; scutum without dark spots......................................................................................................................... S. poncedeleoni quite similar to males, with analogous armature and just a few dimorphic characters. Pedipalpi for all species within this genus are extremely similar. For the sake of conserving space, illustrations of the pedipalpus are provided only for S. poncedeleoni.
description: Published as part of Orrico, Victor G. D. & Kury, Adriano B., 2009, A cladistic analysis of the Stygnicranainae Roewer, 1913 (Arachnida, Opiliones, Cranaidae) - where do longipalp cranaids belong?, pp. 470-494 in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 157 (3) on pages 472-474, DOI: 10.1111/j.1096-3642.2009.00543.x, http://zenodo.org/record/5443367