Mecolaesthus guasacaca Huber 2020, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Huber, Bernhard A.
name: Villarreal, Osvaldo
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2020
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Pholcidae
Mecolaesthus
Mecolaesthus guasacaca

description: Mecolaesthus guasacaca Huber sp. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 29447A47-88C3-4BBE-97CC-FA235EF12591
Figs 532–544, 551–553, 1045
Diagnosis
Distinguished from congeners by combination of: armature of male chelicerae (Figs 542–543; pair of long frontal processes slightly converging at tips); shape of procursus (Figs 536–538; distinct retrolateral apophysis; distinctive pair of distal processes, dorsal process dark with obtuse tip, ventral process transparent with pointed tip); shapes of distal bulbal sclerites (Figs 539–541; ventral sclerite with three distinctive elements); median process posteriorly on male carapace; epigynum (Fig. 551; relatively small dark brown plate, roundish and protruding); and internal female genitalia (Figs 544, 552–553; complex pore plate, transversal anterior sclerite, lateral wing-like sclerites).
Etymology
The species name refers to guasacaca, a savory sauce in Venezuelan cuisine, made from avocadoes, citrus juice, parsley, garlic, coriander, and chili peppers.
Type material
VENEZUELA – Falcón • ♂ holotype, ZFMK (Ar 21947), Sierra de San Luis, E Curimagua (11.1748° N, 69.6273° W), 960 m a.s.l., 18 Nov. 2018 (B.A. Huber, O. Villarreal M.).
Other material examined
VENEZUELA – Falcón • 3 ♀♀, ZFMK (Ar 21948), same collection data as for holotype.
Description
Male (holotype)
MEASUREMENTS. Total body length 3.7, carapace width 1.4. Distance PME–PME 140 µm; diameter PME 115 µm; distance PME–ALE 80 µm; diameter AME 40 µm; distance AME–AME 20 µm. Leg 1: 46.4 (11.5 +0.5+11.3 + 20.3 +2.8), tibia 2: 7.1, tibia 3: 5.5, tibia 4: 6.8; tibia 1 L/d: 84.
COLOR (in ethanol). Carapace pale ochre-gray with light brown median mark, radial lines, and lateral margins, ocular area and clypeus light brown, clypeus with whitish median marks below AME and at distal margin; sternum pale ochre-yellow, slightly darker anteriorly; legs ochre to light brown, without dark rings, tips of femora and tibiae lighter; abdomen pale gray, dorsally and laterally densely covered with dark bluish marks, ventrally with brown mark in gonopore area, light brown book lung covers, and bluish median mark behind gonopore; without dark plate above pedicel.
BODY. Habitus as in Fig. 532. Ocular area moderately raised. Carapace anteriorly with shallow but distinct thoracic groove, posteriorly not inflated but with distinct median process. Clypeus unmodified. Sternum wider than long (0.95/0.65). Abdomen slightly elongated, pointed at spinnerets.
CHELICERAE. As in Figs 542–543, with pair of long frontal apophyses slightly converging distally, without modified hairs.
PALPS. As in Figs 534–535; coxa with retrolateral apophysis, trochanter with small ventral process, femur proximally with large retrolateral-ventral process, distally with large rounded ventral process; procursus (Figs 536–538) at basis with short dorsal process with obtuse tip, with distinct retrolateral process, with distinctive pair of distal processes, dorsal process dark with obtuse tip, ventral process transparent with pointed tip; genital bulb complex (Figs 539–541), large distal process partly membranous/whitish, with distinctive ventral sclerite consisting of three elements (arrows in Fig. 539).
LEGS. Without spines and curved hairs; few vertical hairs; coxa 4 with median ventral process set with small tubercles (apparently not opposing any abdominal structure; arrow in Fig. 533); retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 3%; prolateral trichobothrium present on all leg tibiae; tarsus 1 with ~35 pseudosegments, mostly distinct.
Female
In general similar to male but carapace posteriorly without median process and coxa 4 without median ventral process. Tibia 1 in three females: 9.4, 9.4, 10.7. Epigynum (Fig. 551) relatively small dark brown plate, roundish and protruding, whitish area in front of epigynum; posterior plate short but wide. Internal genitalia (Figs 544, 552–553) with complex pore plates that appear twisted or divided into two parts each; with transversal anterior sclerite and lateral wing-shaped sclerites.
Distribution
Known from type locality only, in Venezuela, Falcón (Fig. 1045).
Natural history
The species was found among rocks near the ground in a well preserved humid forest.
description: Published as part of Huber, Bernhard A. & Villarreal, Osvaldo, 2020, On Venezuelan pholcid spiders (Araneae, Pholcidae), pp. 1-317 in European Journal of Taxonomy 718 on pages 149-150, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2020.718.1101, http://zenodo.org/record/4069574