Micropholcus alfara Huber & Meng 2024, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Huber, Bernhard A.
name: Meng, Guanliang
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2024
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Arachnida
Araneae
Pholcidae
Micropholcus
Micropholcus alfara

description: Micropholcus alfara Huber sp. nov.
Figs 3 C, D, 6 A, B, 7 A, B, 9 A, 11 D, E, 31, 32, 33, 34
Type material.
Holotype. Saudi Arabia – ‘ Asir • ♂; S of Al Fara; 18.0487 ° N, 42.7096 ° E; 2250 m a. s. l.; 21 Mar. 2024; B. A. Huber leg.; KSMA. Paratypes. Saudi Arabia – ‘ Asir • 4 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀ (1 ♂, 1 ♀ used for SEM); same collection data as for holotype; ZFMK Ar 24660 to 24661.
Other material.
Saudi Arabia – ‘ Asir • 1 ♂, 1 ♀, in pure ethanol; same collection data as for holotype; ZFMK SA 112.
Diagnosis.
Distinguished from known congeners by unique shapes of bulbal processes, in particular distinctive prolateral sclerite (arrowed in Fig. 32 D; similar only in M. harajah sp. nov., cf. Fig. 28 D); from most congeners (except M. harajah sp. nov. and M. dhahran sp. nov.) also by rectangular hinged process of procursus with obtuse tip and small ventral terminal pointed process and small proximal spine (in other Saudi Arabian species procursus wider and more curved dorsally, without proximal spine; in M. fauroti relatively longer and without spine); from most congeners (except for three species above and M. jacominae and M. darbat sp. nov.) also by long trochanter apophysis (Fig. 31 C; longer than palpal femur). Female with distinct internal crescent-shaped structures (Fig. 33 C), similar only in M. dhahran sp. nov. and M. harajah sp. nov., but closer together; anterior arc narrow (Fig. 33 C), similar only in M. harajah sp. nov. (cf. Fig. 29 C), in M. dhahran sp. nov. wider and with different curvature. From M. harajah sp. nov. also distinguished by absence of subdistal conical projection on hinged process of procursus (cf. Fig. 28 C) and by absence of pair of external epigynal pockets (cf. Fig. 30 A).
Description.
Male (holotype). Measurements. Total body length 2.6, carapace width 1.0. Distance PME - PME 185 µm; diameter PME 80 µm; distance PME - ALE 25 µm; distance AME - AME 20 µm; diameter AME 55 µm. Leg 1: 28.4 (7.1 + 0.4 + 6.9 + 12.8 + 1.2), tibia 2: 4.1, tibia 3: 2.3, tibia 4: 3.3; tibia 1 L / d: 81; diameters of leg femora (at half length) 0.09–0.10; of leg tibiae 0.085.
Colour (in ethanol). Carapace pale ochre-yellow with large brown median mark connected posteriorly to series of small lateral marks, ocular area slightly darkened, clypeus without darker pattern; sternum whitish; legs ochre-yellow, patellae brown, tibia-metatarsus joints with indistinct brown ring, femur 1 proximally slightly darkened (very indistinct); abdomen ochre-grey, dorsally and laterally with large whitish internal marks.
Body. Habitus as in Fig. 3 C. Ocular area slightly raised (more distinct in frontal view). Carapace without thoracic groove. Clypeus unmodified. Sternum wider than long (0.64 / 0.48), unmodified. Abdomen oval, approximately twice as long as wide.
Chelicerae. As in Fig. 33 A, B; with pair of distal apophyses near laminae, each with two cone-shaped hairs (Fig. 6 A, B); with pair of proximal frontal processes; with prominent pair of proximal lateral processes.
Palps. As in Fig. 31; coxa unmodified; trochanter with very long ventral apophysis with small proximal retrolateral hump and modified hair on distal tip (Fig. 9 A); femur small relative to tibia, distally widened, with distinct ventral hump; femur-patella joints shifted toward prolateral side; tibia-tarsus joints shifted toward retrolateral side; tarsus with large tarsal organ. Procursus (Fig. 32 A – C) proximally with sclerotised prolateral hump; at half-length with prolateral-ventral sclerotised ridge, prolateral thick sclerotised ridge, and brush of dorsal hairs; distally with small retrolateral ridge and strong ventral apophysis, membranous ventral-prolateral flap (Fig. 7 A), and dorsal hinged process. Genital bulb (Figs 7 B, 32 D, E) with strong proximal sclerite; with two sclerotised processes of unclear homology: prolateral process with strong pointed cone directed towards bulbous part of genital bulb; retrolateral process originating from basis of embolus, heavily sclerotised with retrolateral row of pointed cones of similar sizes; and mostly semi-transparent short embolus with membranous pointed extension and subdistal row of transparent hair-like processes prolaterally.
Legs. Without spines, without curved hairs, without sexually dimorphic short vertical hairs; retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 6 %; prolateral trichobothrium absent on tibia 1; tarsus 1 with> 20 pseudosegments, distally distinct.
Variation (male). Tibia 1 in five males: 6.8–7.2 (mean 7.0).
Female. In general very similar to male. Tibia 1 in five females: 4.6–5.4 (mean 5.0). Epigynum (Fig. 34 A, B) variably protruding, anterior plate oval, with small and indistinct knob-shaped process posteriorly; with pair of lateral sclerites bent towards lateral anteriorly, without small pockets at posterior ends; and median internal dark structure visible through cuticle. Posterior epigynal plate very short and indistinct. Internal genitalia (Figs 33 C, 34 C, D) with pair of elongated pore plates in transversal position; with pair of lateral sclerites, median crescent-shaped structures, and large membranous anterior arc.
Etymology.
The species name is derived from the type locality; noun in apposition.
Distribution.
Known from type locality only, in Saudi Arabia, ‘ Asir Province (Fig. 13 C).
Natural history.
The spiders were found sitting on the undersides of large boulders (Fig. 14 B), in small cave-like spaces between ground and boulder. Two egg sacs had diameters of 2.0– 2.2 mm, and contained ~ 25– 35 eggs each, with an egg diameter of 0.58–0.62 mm.
description: Published as part of Huber, Bernhard A. & Meng, Guanliang, 2024, Old World Micropholcus spiders, with first records of acrocerid parasitoids in Pholcidae (Araneae), pp. 95-182 in ZooKeys 1213 on pages 95-182, DOI: 10.3897/zookeys.1213.133178