Racata brevis Tanasevitch 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Tanasevitch, Andrei V.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Linyphiidae
Racata
Racata brevis

description: Racata brevis sp. nov.
Figs 5-6, 16-17, 24
Holotype: Male [Sum-00/12]; INDONESIA, Sumatra, Jambi Province, Mt Kerinci, footpath to summit, NW of Kersik Tua, 1°44’12”S, 101°15’35”E, evergreen hill forest, sifting, 1800-1980 m a.s.l.; 16.II.2000; leg. P. Schwendinger.
Paratype: 1 female; collected together with the holotype.
Diagnosis: The species is characterized by possessing the widest and shortest embolus among all known congeners, as well as the shortest copulatory ducts.
Etymology: The specific epithet is a Latin adjective meaning “short” referring to the relatively short embolus of the male.
Description: Male holotype. Total length 1.45. Carapace 0.70 long, 0.63 wide, rounded (Fig. 5), pale greyish brown. Head part slightly elevated and protruded distad. Eyes enlarged, anterior median eyes much smaller than others. Chelicerae 0.30 long, mastidion absent. Legs pale greyish yellow, its segments slightly darkened distally. Leg I 2.60 long (0.75+0.15+0.65+0.67+0.38), IV 2.47 long (0.68+0.13+0.63+0.63+0.40). Chaetotaxy: TiI: 2-1-1- 0; II: 2-0-1-0, III-IV: 2-0-0-0; MtI-IV without spines. Length of spines 1.5-2 diameters of corresponding leg segment. TmI 0.24. Metatarsi IV without trichobothrium. Palp (Figs 16-17): Tibia short, simple. Distal half of cymbium narrowed. Proximal part of paracymbium wide, distal part L-shaped. Tegulum weakly sclerotized, light in colour. Distal suprategular apophysis very small. Median membrane panicleshaped. Convector large, strongly sclerotized, covering base of embolus. Embolus very wide proximally, abruptly narrowing distally, its distal part relatively long and narrow. Abdomen (Fig. 5) 0.85 long, 0.53 wide, grey.
Female. Total length 1.50. Carapace 0.60 long, 0.50 wide, unmodified, pale greyish yellow. Chelicerae 0.25 long. Legs yellow, its segments darkened distally. Leg I 2.67 long (0.70+0.18+0.68+0.63+0.48), IV 2.24 long (0.65+0.18+0.60+0.43+0.38). Chaetotaxy as in male. Length of spines 2-2.5 diameters of corresponding leg segment. TmI 0.26. Metatarsi IV without trichobothrium. Abdomen 0.85 long, 0.63 wide, grey. Epigyne (Figs 6, 24): Cavity relatively small, depression anterior to it narrow. Copulatory ducts very wide, forming half a loop. Receptacles curved, beanlike.
Taxonomic remarks: The male can be easily distinguished by its boat-shaped convector and by the bent, thick embolus with a narrow, rapier-like distal part. The epigyne of R. brevis slightly resembles that of R. grata, but the depression anterior to the cavity is narrow instead of rounded, almost the same size as the cavity (Fig. 6 cf. Figs 3-4).
Distribution: Known only from the type locality on the densely forested southern slopes of the highest mountain of Sumatra, Indonesia.
description: Published as part of Tanasevitch, Andrei V., 2019, On the spider genus Racata Millidge, 1995, with the description of three new species (Araneae, Linyphiidae), pp. 53-59 in Revue suisse de Zoologie 126 (1) on page 56, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.2619518