Protimesius orcus Osvaldo Villarreal & Ludson Neves de Ázara & Kury 2019, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Osvaldo Villarreal
name: Ludson Neves de Ázara
name: Kury, Adriano Brilhante
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Opiliones
Stygnidae
Protimesius
Protimesius orcus

description: Protimesius orcus sp. nov.
(Figure 2, 3 (b,d), 4 (g – l), 5 (c,d), 6 (a,c), 7 (d – f), 8 (d – g), 10)
Type data
³ holotype (MNRJ 19403), Brazil, Ceará, Santa Quitéria, Caverna P-08 [−4.56796°, −39.763976°], 13.ii. 2014, F. Pellegatti-Franco and D.R. Pedroso leg. Paratypes: 3 ³ 1 ♀ (MNRJ 9060), same locality as the holotype, 15 – 21.vii. 2014, F. Pellegatti-Franco and D.R. Pedroso leg.; 4 ³ 5 ♀ (MNRJ 4279), same data as the holotype; 1 ³ (MNRJ 4278), Brazil, Ceará, Santa Quitéria, Caverna E-16 [−4.560115°, −39.757793°], 03 – 13.ii. 2014, F. Pellegatti-Franco and D.R. Pedroso leg.; 5 ³ 1 ♀ (MNRJ 9061), same locality as the holotype, 15 – 21.vii. 2014, F. Pellegatti-Franco and D.R. Pedroso leg.
Etymology
From Latin Orcus, a god of the underworld, punisher of broken oaths in Italic and Roman mythologies. As with the Greek Hades, the name of the god was also used for the underworld itself.
Diagnosis
Dorsal scutum type epsilon, with rectangular edges (Figure 3 (b); 2(a)); mesotergal area III unarmed (Figure 3 (b,d); 2(a,c)); pedipalpal tibia smooth (Figure 5 (c,d)) (vs coarse granulation in P. gracilis or scarce and low dorsal granulation in P. lucifer sp. nov.); colouration uniformly orange (Figure 2 (a – c)).
Description
Measurements of male holotype (MNRJ 19403). DSL = 3.4; DSW = 3.0; ID = 1.8; pedipalp: coxa = 1.0, trochanter = 0.6, femur = 3.3, patella = 2.9, tibia = 2.1, tarsus = 1.5, total = 10.0; leg IV: femur = 4.7, tibia = 3.4, metatarsus = 5.6, total = 17.9.
Dorsum (Figure 3 (bıd); (6a)). Anterior margin of prosoma smooth, with low anterior eminence. Interocular region and eye mound smooth. Area I divided, smooth. Lateral margin almost smooth, only with a longitudinal row of minute granules. Area I divided, with one small granule on each side; II with one small granule on each side; III with a pair of small paramedian tubercle and with a row of three small granules on each side. Areas I – III straight. Posterior margin slightly convex with row of small granules. Free tergites I – III with row of medium granules.
Venter (Figure 2 (b)). Genital operculum with three small granules. Free sternites with a row of small granules.
Chelicerae (Figure 2 (a–c)). Swollen. Segments I – II smooth. Mobile finger with a high basal tooth and with three small distal teeth; fixed finger with three small distal teeth.
Pedipalps (Figure 2 (d–e); 5(c–d)). Coxa with three basal ventral medium tubercles. Trochanter with one basal and one medial ventral medium tubercle. Femur with a ventral distal small tubercle. Patella generally smooth. Tibia dorsally smooth, ventrally with a row of ectal medium tubercles; tibia mesal IIiIi, ectal IIiIi. Tarsus dorsally smooth, but with a ventral row of tubercles in the ectal and mesal portion, tarsus mesal IiIii, ectal iIiii.
Legs (Figure 4 (g–l); 6(aıc)). Coxa I with a row of five medium tubercles; II with a row of small tubercles; III – IV with scattered small granules. Trochanter I – II with one basal and two apical ventral medium tubercles, one retrolateral medium tubercle; III with five ventral medium tubercles and one retrolateral medium tubercle; IV with a basal ventral row of three medium tubercles, two subdistal ventral medium tubercle, one retrolateral and one prolateral tubercle (this larger), besides five medium dorsal tubercles. Femur I – III with retroventral and proventral rows with small tubercles, others rows with minute granules; III with retroventral and proventral rows with medium tubercles, other rows with small granules, one retrodorsal and one prodorsal apical medium large tubercles; IV with retroventral and proventral rows with high tubercles, others rows with medium tubercles, one retrodorsal and one prodorsal apical large tubercle. Patella I – II smooth, III with scattered small granules and ending with two medium dorsal large tubercles; IV two ventral rows of medium tubercles and ending with two high dorsal large tubercles. Tibia I – II smooth; III with retroventral and proventral rows of small granules; IV with retroventral and proventral rows of medium tubercles increasing apically. Metatarsus I – IV smooth. Distitarsus not inflated. Tarsal process reduced, with a terminal long set. Leg III – IV without tarsal scopula. Tarsal segmentation: 8(3)/19 – 20(3)/6/7.
Penis (Figure 2 (fıg); 7(d–f)). LP trapezoidal, with lateral sides concave, and distal border with triangular ventral tongue; LP clearly differentiated from the truncus/malleus by a ventral crack. Stylus curved, with large triangular dorsal process. MS A1 – 2 straight, positioned dorsolaterally, slightly below half of the LP; MS B absent; MS C1 – 3 being born close to the dorsomedial region, large and apically curved; MS D1 absent, MS D2 straight and large, dorsomedially located, at level of MS A. Microsetae campus not restricted to lateral regions of the LP, invading slightly the medial zone, with a small gap between both fields.
Colouration. Body and appendages in alcohol Vivid Yellow (82) and Vivid Orange Yellow (66) in vivo, chelicera reticulated, legs I – III in alcohol and in vivo Brilliant Orange Yellow (76).
Female paratype (MNRJ 9060): Dorsal scutum length = 2.9; dorsal scutum width = 2.6; interocular distance = 1.3; pedipalp: coxa = 0.8, trochanter = 0.4, femur = 4.1, patella = 3.1, tibia = 1.0, tarsus = 1.6, total = 9.9; leg IV: femur = 5.5, tibia = 3.7, metatarsus = 6.6, total = 20.3. Similar to male, except for: chelicera not swollen, legs finely granular. Pedipalpal tibia mesal IIiiIi, ectal IIiIi; tarsus mesal IiIii, ectal iIiii (this variation could be intraspecific and no sexual dimorphism).
Distribution
Brazil, Ceará state: Santa Quitéria.
description: Published as part of Osvaldo Villarreal, Ludson Neves de Ázara & Kury, Adriano Brilhante, 2019, Revalidation of Obidosus Roewerı 1913 and description of two new cave-dwelling species of Protimesius Roewerı 1913 from Brazil (Opiliones: Stygnidae), pp. 965-989 in Journal of Natural History 53 (15) on pages 976-978, DOI: 10.1080/00222933.2019.1620893, http://zenodo.org/record/3673222