Eremocosta Roewer 1934
Creators: name: Cushing, Paula E.
name: Channiago, Felix
name: Brookhart, Jack O.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2018
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Solifugae
Eremobatidae
Eremocosta

description: Genus Eremocosta Roewer 1934.
Eremopus Roewer 1934: 561 [Junior homonym of Eremopus Brady 1910 (Crustacea, Copepoda)], Muma 1989: 4. Eremocosta Roewer 1934: 569 (synonymized by Muma 1951: 41).
Eremocantha Roewer 1934: 571 (synonymized by Muma 1970: 9).
Type species. Of Eremopus: Eremopus montezuma Roewer 1934, by original designation. Of Eremocosta: Eremocosta gigas Roewer 1934, by original designation. Of Eremocantha: Eremocantha robusta Roewer 1934, by original designation.
Revised diagnosis. Eremocosta species are relatively large; ranging from 26 to 50 mm in length. Color patterns of the body and pedipalps are variable. The diagnostic synapomorphy of Eremocosta is the male fixed finger with a deep VDC (Figs. 1A–G). Neither Roewer (1934) nor Muma (1951, 1970) described the carina running inside this cavity that is evident in some species (Figs. 1B–F, arrows). The fixed finger of males lacks median dentition (Fig. 2). The movable finger of males has a large MP, one to two MSM, and one MM teeth (Fig. 2). The MP tooth is large and distinct. In E. gigas, E. gigasella, and E. striata the movable finger has what we here call a distal tooth of the movable finger (MD) (Figs. 2K, O & S, arrows). The fondal notch ranges from obscure to distinct (Fig. 2), and ordinarily has two to four RFA in the fondal notch and in some species one to three RFA on the ventral side of the fixed finger (Fig. 3). Pro- and retrolateral fondal teeth vary in gradation among the species (Fig. 3). The retrolateral IV is tiny in some species. Male cheliceral setal formation (sfc) consists of tubular setae dorsally, two rows of tubular setae prolaterally with the inner mesal row being plumose and extending dorsally to and sometimes above fondal tooth I. The prodorsal setae (mpd) consist of a proximal patch in all species except E. gigasella which has a linear row extending to MM. The proventral distal setae (pdp) consist of three robust setae and one proximal thin seta. The female chelicera fixed finger has a large FP, one to two FSM, a large FM, small FSD, and distinct FD (Fig. 2). The female movable finger has a large MP, one or two MSM, and one MM teeth. MPL tooth distinct on males and females (Fig. 2). Eremocosta females demonstrate typical eremobatid female cheliceral setal pattern with pvd and mpd setae forming a continuous plumose row from the FD to the MM teeth. The arms of the genital operculum of Eremocosta are alate and widely separated posteriorly (Fig. 4 and Muma 1989). The genital operculum is largely species-specific with some possessing thin arms with club like wings; others recurved, bent laterally at their posterior ends with no distinct external pits. No palpal papillae or ctenidia are present.
description: Published as part of Cushing, Paula E., Channiago, Felix & Brookhart, Jack O., 2018, Revision of the camel spider genus Eremocosta Roewer and a description of the female Eremocosta gigas Roewer (Arachnida, Solifugae), pp. 443-466 in Zootaxa 4402 (3) on pages 445-446, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4402.3.2, http://zenodo.org/record/1209676