A revision of the western hemisphere Chalcoscirtus (Araneae: Salticidae)
Author
Bruce Cutler
text
Bulletin of the British Arachnological Society
1990
8
105
108
journal article
Chalcoscirtus alpicola (L. Koch)
(Figs. 1 -3, 5-12, Map 1)
Euophrys alpicola L. Koch, 1876: 273
, 346-348 (♀),
holotype
♀
from “
Funsterthaljoch gegen Niederthai
”,
Stubier Alpen
.
Euophrys (?) alpicola: Thaler, 1981: 124
, figs. 59, 67, 71 (♂, ♀).
Chalcoscirtus alpicola
: Prószyúski, 1987: 13- 14, 7 figs. (♂ ♀).
Icius
[Scius as printed was a typographical error]
montanus Banks, 1896: 62
(♂).
Chalcoscirtus montanus: Emerton, 1909: 231
, pl. 12, fig. 9 (♂, ♀); Peckham & Peckham, 1909: 587, pl. 43, fig. 6 (♂, ♀).
Map 1: Distribution of western hemisphere
Chalcoscirtus
.
C. alpicola
— open circles;
C. carbonarius
— filled circles; C. sp. immatures -- triangles.
Diagnosis: The shape of the embolus (Figs. 2-3) and of the female copulatory tubes (Fig. 12) differentiate this species from all other
Chalcoscirtus
. One male from Saskatchewan (Figs. 8- 10) has a somewhat variant palpus with a smaller tibial apophysis and slightly different embolus. However, the palpi of the other
3 males
collected at the same time resemble those of males from other parts of North America. Male from U. S. A.: New Hampshire: Mt Washington, JHE (
MCZ
). Total length 2.2. Carapace 1.09 long, 0.80 wide. Eyefield 0.47 long. Eyerow I 0.73 wide, eyerow III 0.72 wide. Diameter median eyes row I 0.22, laterals row I 0.15, row II eyes 0.03, row III eyes 0.12. Distance eyerow II from eyerow I 0.17, eyerow II from eyerow III 0.12. Femur lengths leg I 0.53, II 0.47, III 0.47, IV 0.55. Leg order 4312. Opisthosoma 1.1 long, 0.7 wide. Chelicerae with 2 promarginal teeth, retro- marginal teeth absent. Ventral leg spination: leg I metatarsus 2 serial retrolateral, 2 serial prolateral; tibia 3 small retrolateral: leg II metatarsus as leg I; tibia 1 mid retrolateral. Colour uniformly dark brown with shining carapace and shining opisthosomal scutum. Carapace width in
13 males
, mean 0.50, range 0.47- 0.57. Female, same locality as male: Total length 3.0. Carapace 1.30 long, 0.85 wide. Eyefield 0.53 long. Eyerow I 0.80 wide, eyerow III 0.78 wide. Díameter median eyes row I 0.22, laterals row I 0.13, row II eyes 0.03, row III eyes 0.22. Distance eyerow II from eyerow I 0.17, eyerow II from eyerow III 0.13. Femur length leg I 0.60, II 0.50, III 0.60, IV 0.72. Leg order 4312. Opisthosoma 1.7 long, 0.8 wide. Chelicerae as in male. Ventral leg spination: leg I metatarsus as in male; tibia 3 serial retrolateral, 2 serial prolateral, 1 middle, 1 distal: leg II as in male. Colour: carapace as in male, opisthosoma dark brown with faint chevrons, scutum lacking, legs orange-yellow. Carapace width in
8 females
, mean 0.50, range 0.40-0.72.
Figs. 1 -4: Scanning electron micrographs of palpal elements of
Chalcoscirtus
. 1 -3
C. alpicola (L. Koch)
from New Hampshire. l Prolateral view of palpus, arrow indicates ventral tibial apophysis. 2-3 Embolic region, asterisk marks embolus; 2 Ventral view; 3 Retrolateral view. 4 C. carbonaríus Emerton from Montana, Fergus Co.,1 embolus, ventro-lateral view. Scale lines: Fig FÍS-. 1 =
0.05 mm
, Figs. 2-3 =
0.02 mm
, Fig. 4 =
0.015 mm
.
Material examined:
CANADA
:
Saskatchewan
:
64 km
N of Swift Current
, Matador Project,
2 June 1970
,
P. W. Riegert
, shortgrass prairie (
4 ♂♂
;
CNC
)
;
same locality,
21 June 1971
(
3 ♀ ♀
,
CNC
)
;
Yukon Territory
:
32 km
N of Burwash
,
139° 25 ’ W
,
61° 35 ' N
,
9 August 1968
,
W. Ivie
(
1 ♂
,
AMNH
)
;
nr. km 72 of Dempster Hwy, N. Klondike Rv.
,
1100 m
,
15 June 1981
,
D. Maddison
, on cobbles among grasses (
1 ♂
;
WM
)
.
U.S.A.
:
Colorado
:
Gunnison Co.
,
Cottonwood Pass, Sawatch Mtns
,
3700m
,
5 July 1961
,
H. & L. Levi
(
1 ♂
;
MCZ
)
;
New Hampshire
:
Coos Co.
,
Mt Washington, F. J.H. E.
(
1 ♂
1 ♀
;
MCZ
)
;
same locality,
11 July 1907
,
J. H. Emerton
(
1 ♂
,
1 ♀
;
MCZ
)
;
Alpine gardens
,
1585 m
,
14 August 1981
,
R. M. Reeves
, pitfall trap (
1 ♂
;
BC
)
;
same locality,
28 August 1981
(
1 ♂
;
RMR
)
;
Utah
:
Box Elder Co.
,
Kellon Pass
,
1615 m
[
29 km
W of Snowville
],
16 April 1969
,
G. E. Knowlton
, juniper and grass duff (
3 ♀ ♀
,
CNC
)
;
Wyoming
:
Big Horn Co.
,
10 km
E of Shell on Hwy
14,
21 May 1977
,
D. Maddison
, on rocks in area of many rocks and low shrubby vegetation (
1 ♂
;
WM
)
;
Yellowstone Natl. Park, Bridge Bay
,
110° 27 ’ W
,
44° 32 ' N
,
20 June 1938
,
W. Ivie
(
1 ♂
;
AMNH
)
.
It is possible that this species occurs on some of the other high mountains of the northeast and should be looked for on Mt Marcy, New York; Mt Katahdin, Maine; and the Shickshocks, Gaspe Peninsula, Quebec.