Pholcus qin S. Li & Yao 2025, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Li, Jinglin
name: He, Qiaoqiao
name: Li, Shuqiang
name: Yao, Zhiyuan
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2025
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Pholcidae
Pholcus
Pholcus qin

description: Pholcus qin S. Li & Yao sp. nov.
Figs 13, 14
Type material.
Holotype: China • ♂; Hebei, Qinhuangdao, Funing District, Daxinzhai Town, Bingtangyu Scenic Spot; 40.106112°N, 119.356216°E; alt. 250 m; 20 Jul. 2024; Z. Yao, J. Li & M. Yan leg.; SYNU -Ar 00437. Paratypes: China • 2 ♂; same data as for the holotype; SYNU -Ar 00438 –39 • 3 ♀; same data as for the holotype; SYNU -Ar 00440 –42.
Etymology.
The specific name refers to the type locality (Qin is a short name for Qinhuangdao); noun in apposition.
Diagnosis.
The new species resembles Pholcus kuaile Yao, Li & Lu, 2022 (Lu et al. 2022: 534, S 21, figs S 22 A – D, S 23 A – H) by having similar male chelicerae (Fig. 14 D) and a vulval anterior arch (Fig. 14 B), but it can be distinguished by the: procursus without an angular ventral sclerite (Fig. 13 B vs. present) and without a distal membranous process (Fig. 13 C vs. present), uncus with two distal apophyses (arrows 2, 3 in Fig. 14 C vs. one), epigynal plate 3 × longer than wide (Fig. 14 A vs. 8 ×), vulval pore plates widely separated and same size as knob (pp in Fig. 14 B vs. close to each other and 8 × larger than knob).
Description.
Male (holotype): Total length 4.64 (4.80 with clypeus), carapace 1.28 long, 1.60 wide, opisthosoma 3.36 long, 1.42 wide. Leg I: 40.72 (10.06, 0.75, 10.00, 17.25, 2.66), leg II: 26.95 (7.31, 0.63, 6.47, 10.96, 1.58), leg III: 18.78 (5.32, 0.58, 4.50, 7.25, 1.13), leg IV: 24.34 (6.60, 0.59, 6.09, 9.68, 1.38); tibia I L / d: 77. Eye interdistances and diameters: PME – PME 0.20, PME 0.13, PME – ALE 0.04, AME – AME 0.05, AME 0.08. Sternum width / length: 1.05 / 0.93. Habitus as in Fig. 14 E, F. Carapace yellowish, with brown radiating marks and marginal brown bands; ocular area yellowish, with median and lateral brown bands; clypeus brownish; sternum yellowish, with brown marks. Legs yellowish, dark brown on patellae and whitish on distal parts of femora and tibiae, with darker rings on subdistal parts of femora and proximal and subdistal parts of tibiae. Opisthosoma yellowish, with dorsal and lateral brown spots. Chelicerae with pair of proximo-lateral apophyses (pa in Fig. 14 D), pair of distal apophyses (da in Fig. 14 D) with two teeth each, and pair of frontal apophyses (fa in Fig. 14 D). Palps as in Fig. 13 A, B; trochanter with long (8 × longer than wide), retrolaterally strongly bulged ventral apophysis; femur with retrolatero-proximal protrusion (arrow in Fig. 13 B) and distinct ventral protrusion; tibia with prolatero-ventral protrusion (arrow in Fig. 13 A); procursus simple proximally but complex distally, with raised prolatero-subdistal edge bearing spine-shaped apophysis (arrow in Fig. 13 C), and two strong dorsal spines (arrow in Fig. 13 D); uncus with scales, proximal apophysis (arrow 1 in Fig. 14 C), and two distal apophyses (arrows 2, 3 in Fig. 14 C); “ pseudo-appendix ” semi-transparent (arrow 4 in Fig. 14 C); embolus weakly sclerotized, with transparent distal projections (e in Fig. 14 C). Retrolateral trichobothrium on tibia I at 3 % proximally; legs with short, vertical setae on tibiae, metatarsi, and tarsi; tarsus I with 40 distinct pseudosegments.
Female (paratype, SYNU -Ar 00440): Similar to male, habitus as in Fig. 14 G, H. Total length 4.71 (4.85 with clypeus), carapace 1.39 long, 1.56 wide, opisthosoma 3.32 long, 1.76 wide; tibia I: 8.15; tibia I L / d: 54. Eye interdistances and diameters: PME – PME 0.18, PME 0.14, PME – ALE 0.04, AME – AME 0.05, AME 0.08. Sternum width / length: 0.96 / 0.90. Clypeus brown. Epigyne posteriorly straight, with knob (kn in Fig. 14 A). Vulva with nearly U-shaped, sclerotized anterior arch (aa in Fig. 14 B) and pair of nearly elliptical pore plates (pp in Fig. 14 B).
Variation.
Tibia I in two paratype males (SYNU -Ar 00438 –39): 10.26, 10.64. Tibia I in the other two paratype females (SYNU -Ar 00441 –42): 8.08, 8.33.
Habitat.
Underside of overhang on rocky cliffs in mountainous area.
Distribution.
Hebei; known only from the type locality (Figs 1, 2 F).
description: Published as part of Li, Jinglin, He, Qiaoqiao, Li, Shuqiang & Yao, Zhiyuan, 2025, Filling a zoogeographical gap in China: Taxonomic descriptions of six new spider species of the Pholcus phungiformes species group (Araneae, Pholcidae), pp. 285-310 in ZooKeys 1232 on pages 285-310, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1232.145622