Andean giants: Priscula spiders from Ecuador, with notes on species groups and egg-sac troglomorphism (Araneae: Pholcidae) Author Huber, Bernhard A. 33607F65-19BF-4DC9-94FD-4BB88CED455F Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, LIB, Bonn, Germany. b.huber@leibniz-lib.de Author Meng, Guanliang 3B848D35-BC61-496E-9A39-7774B3BF237E Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, LIB, Bonn, Germany. G.Meng@leibniz-lib.de Author Dupérré, Nadine F15E1FF2-2DF5-479A-AD10-8076CE96E911 Museum of Nature Hamburg, LIB, Hamburg, Germany. n.duperre@leibniz-lib.de Author Astrin, Jonas 50661540-FD30-4ABA-8415-6B3069105E93 Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig, LIB, Bonn, Germany. J.Astrin.ZFMK@uni-bonn.de Author Herrera, Mauricio 35508EDA-A02C-4B00-BDA2-B516CF61DE21 Instituto Nacional de Biodiversidad, Sección Invertebrados, Quito, Ecuador. mauricio.herrera@biodiversidad.gob.ec text European Journal of Taxonomy 2023 2023-11-28 909 1 63 https://europeanjournaloftaxonomy.eu/index.php/ejt/article/download/2351/10271 journal article 284154 10.5852/ejt.2023.909.2351 d0cc9c9f-6e84-4a88-a82f-96565be36a3d 2118-9773 10462860 A48BD2B3-DC40-45BD-9968-F04890A1C5C5 Priscula esmeraldas Huber sp. nov. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: C9A9D73A-0280-451D-8F95-69C6489E2ABD Figs 21–24 , 41D, G , 42A–C , 43A, F Diagnosis Distinguished from known congeners by details of procursus ( Fig. 22A–C ; distally with unique prolateral process), genital bulb ( Fig. 22D–F ; main bulbal process smaller than in most known congeners and strongly curved), epigynum ( Fig. 24A–B ; shorter than in most known congeners – similar to P. chapintza sp. nov. ), and female internal genitalia ( Fig. 23C ; oval pore plates far apart, strongly converging anteriorly). Type material Holotype ECUADOR – Cotopaxi • ♂ ; San Francisco de Las Pampas , Recinto Rio Esmeraldas , PRISTIRANA Natural Reserve ; 0.4228° S , 78.9543° W ; 1335 m a.s.l. ; 25 Nov. 2019 ; E.E. Tapia and family leg.; QCAZ . Paratypes ECUADOR – Cotopaxi • 3 ♂♂ , 9 ♀♀ ; same collection data as for holotype; QCAZ (12 vials) • 1 ♂ , 4 ♀♀ ( one female used for SEM); same locality as for holotype but 300 m NW; 0.4215° S , 78.9564° W ; 1395 m a.s.l. ; 12 Oct. 2021 ; N. Dupérré , E.E. Tapia , and A.A. Tapia leg; QCAZ • 1 ♂ , 1 ♀ ; same collection data as for preceding; ZFMK Ar 24094 . Other material examined ECUADOR – Cotopaxi • 4 juvs ; same collection data as for holotype; QCAZ . Etymology The species name is derived from the type locality, noun in apposition. Description Male ( holotype ) MEASUREMENTS . Total body length 4.6, carapace width 2.1. Distance PME–PME 180 µm; diameter PME 160 µm; distance PME–ALE 80 µm; distance AME–AME 40 µm; diameter AME 40 µm. ALE and PLE larger than PME (diameterALE210µm,diameter PLE 230µm). Leg1: 46.1 (11.1 +0.9+11.3 +20.3 + 2.5), tibia 2: 8.3, tibia 3: 6.0, tibia 4: 7.6; tibia 1 L/d: 48. COLOR (in ethanol). Carapace ochre-yellow, with darker median mark and whitish marks beside ocular area, ocular area and clypeus dark ochre; sternum light ochre; legs ochre to light brown, with distinct dark rings on femora (subdistally) and tibiae (proximally and subdistally) each preceded and followed by lighter ring; abdomen dorsally and laterally densely covered with black marks separated by network of small white marks, ventrally with large brown mark in front of gonopore. BODY . Habitus similar to P. bonita sp. nov. (cf. Fig. 6C ). Ocular area raised, without hump on posterior side, with comb of slightly stronger hairs at median side of each ocular triad. Deep thoracic groove. Clypeus unmodified except slightly sclerotized rim. Sternum wider than long (1.45/0.85), unmodified. Abdomen higher than long, dorso-posteriorly weakly angular. CHELICERAE . As in Fig. 23A–B , with short entapophyses, pair of short frontal apophyses close to fang joints, without stridulatory ridges. PALPS . As in Fig. 21A–C ; coxa unmodified, trochanter slightly protruding ventrally, femur large, with unsclerotized retrolateral process proximally followed distally by deep indentation, femur distally ventrally protruding but without additional protrusion of rim; patella ventrally reduced to strongly sclerotized narrow rim; tibia small relative to femur; procursus ( Fig. 22A–C ) with distinct slightly protruding whitish area dorsally, distal part distinctively T-shaped in dorsal view ( Fig. 42B ), with long prolateral process and retrolateral process divided into dorsal and ventral flat elements, prolateral and retrolateral processes set with membranous cushions composed of fringes and hair-like processes ( Fig. 42B–C ); genital bulb ( Fig. 22D–F ) with small proximal sclerite connecting to tarsus, with large whitish area on retrolateral-ventral side, relatively small and strongly curved main bulbal process with obtuse tip. Fig. 21. Priscula esmeraldas Huber sp. nov. ; male paratype from San Francisco de Las Pampas, QCAZ; left male palp, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views. Scale line: 0.5 mm. Fig. 22. Priscula esmeraldas Huber ; sp. nov., male paratype from San Francisco de Las Pampas, QCAZ. A–C. Left tarsus and procursus, prolateral, dorsal, and retrolateral views; arrows point at distinctive prolateral process, asterisks: whitish protruding area. D–F. Left genital bulb, dorsal, retrolateral, and ventral views. Scale lines: 0.5 mm. Fig. 23. Priscula esmeraldas Huber sp. nov. ; male and female paratypes from San Francisco de Las Pampas, QCAZ. A–B. Male chelicerae, frontal and lateral views. C. Cleared female genitalia, dorsal view. Scale lines: 0.5 mm. Fig. 24. Priscula esmeraldas Huber sp. nov. ; female paratype from San Francisco de Las Pampas, QCAZ. A– B. Abdomen, ventral and lateral views. C–D. Cleared genitalia, ventral and dorsal views. Scale lines: 0.5 mm. LEGS . Without spines; with curved hairs on metatarsi 1–3; with few short vertical hairs; retrolateral trichobothrium of tibia 1 at 6%; prolateral trichobothrium present on all leg tibiae; tarsi without regular pseudosegmentation but rather with many irregular platelets. Male (variation) Tibia 1 in six males (incl. holotype ): 11.1–12.0 (mean 11.5). Female In general similar to male but clypeus rim unsclerotized, hairs on ocular area slightly less strong. Tibia 1 in 14 females : 7.7–9.2 (mean 8.6). Tip of palp simple, pointed, with dorsal invagination ( Fig. 43A ). Tarsal organs on palps and legs exposed ( Fig. 43F ). ALS with one strongly widened spigot, one pointed spigot, and one large and four small cylindrical spigots ( Fig. 41D ); with distinctively sculptured area medially in front of ALS ( Fig. 41G ). Epigynum ( Fig. 24A–B ) main anterior plate trapezoidal, wider than long, slightly protruding, internal arc visible through cuticle; posterior epigynal plate medially divided by wide whitish area. Internal genitalia ( Figs 23C , 24C–D ) with simple sclerotized arc, membranous ‘valve’, and pair or oval pore plates far apart. Distribution Known from two neighboring sites in San Francisco de Las Pampas, Cotopaxi Province , Ecuador ( Fig. 4B ). Natural history The spiders were collected from little cracks and crevices in an outcrop along the river bank. One egg-sac had a diameter of 3.7 mm , and contained ~ 40 eggs with an egg diameter of 0.95 mm .