Rayforstia lordhowensis Rix &amp; Harvey 2010, sp. n.
Creators: name: Rix, Michael
name: Harvey, Mark
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2010
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Micropholcommatidae
Rayforstia
Rayforstia lordhowensis

description: <i>Rayforstia lordhowensis</i> Rix &amp; Harvey, sp. n. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: F924C5AC-108D-4E75-AC69-8B1818440781 Figs 87E, 88–89, 216 <b>Type material.</b> Holotype male: next to Soldier’s Creek, Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia, litter, 31°34'55"S, 159°05'09"E, 8.VI.2003, I. Hutton, K. Lees (AMS KS88916). Paratypes: Allotype female, Stephens Reserve, New Settlement, Lord Howe Island, New South Wales, Australia, pitfall trap, 31°31'33"S, 159°03'53"E, 4–14.XII.2000, AM team (AMS KS76260). <b>Etymology.</b> The specific epithet refers to the type locality of this species. <b>Diagnosis.</b> Males of <i>Rayforstia lordhowensis</i> can be distinguished from all other described congeners except <i>R. raveni</i> by the absence of a dorsal scute (Figs 88 A–B); and from <i>R. raveni</i> by the shorter embolus and more symmetric, triangular conductor (Fig. 89). Females can be distinguished from all other described congeners by the tilted, globular morphology of the spermathecae (Fig. 87E). Both sexes can also be recognised by the small body size and Lord Howe Island distribution (Fig. 216). <b>Description.</b> <i>Holotype male</i>: Total length 0.68. Carapace 0.34 long, 0.27 wide. Abdomen 0.36 long, 0.25 wide. Leg I femur 0.25. Body colour very pale cream. Carapace raised anteriorly, not fused to sternum except around petiole; dorsal surface of pars cephalica slightly convex in lateral view. Eyes present on anterior margin of pars cephalica, but barely-visible due to faded colour of specimen. Chelicerae without bulging anterior projections; promargin with three peg teeth. Legs relatively short (leg I femur-carapace ratio 0.74); macrosetae absent. Abdomen oval, covered with hair-like setae; dorsal scute and lateral sclerotic strips absent. Pedipalpal patella with retrolaterally-directed, hooked lRPA and rounded, depressed distal region with ornate, ridged cuticular microstructure; tegulum smooth, with excavate ETR and triangular distal conductor; embolus long (length&gt; 5× width), looping dorsal to conductor (Fig. 89). <i>Allotype female</i>: Total length 0.86. Carapace 0.41 long, 0.31 wide. Abdomen 0.49 long, 0.37 wide. Leg I femur 0.28. Body colour very pale cream. Carapace raised anteriorly, not fused to sternum except around petiole; dorsal surface of pars cephalica slightly convex in lateral view. Eyes present on anterior margin of pars cephalica, but barely-visible due to faded colour of specimen. Chelicerae without bulging anterior projections; promargin without peg teeth. Legs relatively short (leg I femur-carapace ratio 0.68); macrosetae absent. Abdomen oval, covered with hair-like setae; dorsal scute and lateral sclerotic strips absent. Pedipalp entire, five-segmented. Epigyne with distinctive external morphology (Fig. 88D); spermathecae globular, tilted mesally; insemination ducts looped; fertilisation ducts sinuous (Fig. 87E). <b>Distribution.</b> Known only from Lord Howe Island in the western Pacific Ocean, 780 km north-east of Sydney (Fig. 216). <b>Remarks.</b> <i>Rayforstia lordhowensis</i> seems more similar to Australian species of <i>Rayforstia</i> than to New Zealand taxa, as evidenced by the absence of a dorsal scute on the male abdomen and the close similarity to <i>R. raveni</i> from eastern Australia. The species is found on both the north and mountainous south of Lord Howe Island (Fig. 220); the habitat at Stephens Reserve is lowland, subtropical rainforest dominated by Kentia palms (<i>Howea</i> spp.) (Fig. 220F). It is the smallest known species of <i>Rayforstia</i>.
description: Published as part of <i>Rix, Michael &amp; Harvey, Mark, 2010, The spider family Micropholcommatidae (Arachnida: Araneae: Araneoidea): a relimitation and revision at the generic level, pp. 1-321 in ZooKeys 36 (36)</i> on pages 57-58, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.36.306, http://zenodo.org/record/576620