Problem solving in the spider families Miturgidae, Ctenidae and Psechridae (Araneae) in Australia and New Zealand

17 Pages·2003·1.3 MB·

2003. The Journal of Arachnology 31:105–121
PROBLEM SOLVING IN THE SPIDER FAMILIES
MITURGIDAE, CTENIDAE AND PSECHRIDAE
(ARANEAE) IN AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND
Robert J. Raven and Kylie Stumkat: Queensland Museum, PO Box 3300, South
Brisbane, Queensland 4101 Australia
ABSTRACT. The genus Uliodon L. Koch is reviewed. It now includes only the type species,Uliodon
albopunctatus L. Koch 1873, Uliodon cervinus L. Koch 1873, and Zora frenatus Koch 1873, and the
genus is transferred to the Zoropsidae. Uliodon is known only from New Zealand. Through an original
misreading of the type specimen locality data, both species were erroneously reported from Australia.
Forster and Homann previously referred to Uliodon species as Miturga, which is endemic to Australia.
The subfamily Uliodoninae Lehtinen 1967 was founded on the characters of Zora tarantulina L. Koch
1873,latertransferredtoUliodonbySimon.Thediagnosticcharacterofthesubfamily,theverylongpath
of the embolus, is not found in Uliodon. The subfamily is here diagnosed from the genus; its validity is
unclear. In any case, both Uliodon and Uliodoninae are transferred to the Zoropsidae along with the
AustralianHuntiaGray&Thompson2001.Zoratarantulinaismadethetypespeciesofanewmonotypic
genus, Mituliodon, included in the Miturgidae; the genus is known only from Australia and Timor. Mi-
tuliodontarantulinus(L.Koch1873)nownewlyincludesinitssynonymy,Uliodonaustraliensis(L.Koch
1873), Uliodontorvus(L.Koch1873),MiturgamaculataHogg1900,SyspirarubicundaHogg1900and
Miturga velox Hickman 1930. The New Zealand genus Zealoctenus is transferred from the Ctenidae to
the Miturgidae because it is very similar to the Australian genus Diaprograpta Simon 1909; the other
New Zealand ‘‘ctenid’’ genus, Nemoctenus Forster & Wilton 1973, along with the Australian zorid Hor-
ioctenoides Main 1954 are synonymized with the zorid genus Argoctenus L. Koch 1878, found in Aus-
tralia, New Zealand and New Caledonia. The New Zealand ‘‘psechrids’’ Poaka Forster & Wilton 1973
and Haurokoa Forster & Wilton 1973 are transferred to the Amaurobiidaeand Tengellidae, respectively.
Keywords: Australasia,Lycosoidea, Miturgidae, Psechridae
InourstudiesontheAustralianMiturgidae, Holland’’. Later in that monograph, Koch de-
aproblemwasencounteredwithNewZealand scribedfournewspecies(includingonebased
taxa which Forster (e.g. Forster 1967; Forster on a male, Zora tarantulina L. Koch 1873)
&Forster1973)hadconsideredMiturgaTho- from Australia and placed them in the Pa-
rell 1870. When that New Zealand material laearctic (zorid) genus Zora. Simon (1897)
was examined and relationships sought, the transferred the subsequent four species of
late Ray Forster (pers. comm.) agreed that al- Zora C.L. Koch 1847 into Uliodon (Z. tar-
though it resembled Miturga it was not con- antulina, Z. australiensis, Z. torva and Z. fer-
generic. Discerning what exactly constitutesa ruginea), a transfer that has not since been
miturgid has been like the process of peeling contested. Lehtinen (1967) transferred Ulio-
abanana.Onlybyremovingthemonophyletic don intotheMiturgidaeandraisedanewsub-
outer layers can the integrity and monophyly family based on the ‘‘exceptional course of
of the inner fruit (Miturgidae) be established. theembolus’’ofthemalepalpofUliodontar-
Raven et al. (2001) began this process with antulinus. Recently, Griswold (1993) formed
the description of a new ctenid genus, Amau- acladogramusingUliodontarantulinusasthe
ropelma Raven et al. 2001, which under ex- exemplar for the Miturgidae.
isting diagnoses was a miturgid. Hence, although unrevised, the genus Ulio-
The genus Uliodon L. Koch 1873 was de- don has been used in two major phylogenetic
scribed for females of two new species, U. studies (Lehtinen 1967; Griswold 1993). In
albopunctatus L. Koch 1873 and U. cervinus the latter, it was the sole representative of the
L. Koch 1873, both reportedly from ‘‘New Miturgidae. Spiders heretofore assigned to
105
106 THE JOURNALOF ARACHNOLOGY
Uliodon in Australia are widespread and ac- ther extend the concept of the family. Under
tive hunters in leaf litter through coastal Aus- that revised diagnosis, the New ZealandUlio-
tralia. In our present studies on the Australian don fit well into the Zoropsidae.
Miturgidae, we could find only onespeciesof Having removed Uliodon from the Mitur-
Uliodon, that figured by Griswold (1993) as gidae, a new genus is needed for Zora tar-
U. tarantulinus (L. Koch). At the conclusion antulina. The begged question is then: What
of the study, we examined the types of Ulio- is a miturgid and are there any in New Zea-
don, U. albopunctatus (the type species), and land?Davies(1986:35)keyedtheMiturgidae
U. cervinus, in what we thought would be a by posterior eyes straight or slightly curved,
confirmatory check. The types of both U. al- long and conical apical segment of PLS,
bopunctatus and U. cervinus are females and striped carapace, sheet web, two claws and
could not be matched morphologically with claw tufts. That character combination does
any Australian spider genus in the Miturgidae not apply to any known miturgid. Diapro-
or other families. They lack both true claw grapta,Mituliodon,newgenera,andmostmi-
tuftsandathirdclawbuthaveagoodscopula turgid genera lack the elongate PLS; Miturga
as in Miturga. Females differ from those of lacks claw tufts and alone builds a sheet web
Miturga in the epigyne and the spigots on the as a retreat. Raven et al. (2001) showed that
PMS. We did, however, find material match- those characters were insufficient to correctly
ing the type material of both species only in placethectenidgenusAmauropelmaRaven&
New Zealand. When males matching the fe- Stumkat 2001.
males of U. albopunctatus and U. cervinus Miturgidaearepresentlybestdefinedbythe
were recognized from New Zealand, even character combination given below (also see
more differences between Uliodon s. strict. Table 1). The boundary with the Ctenidaehas
andMiturgawerenoted.Neitherspeciesorig- beendiffuse(seeRavenetal.2001)andhence
inally placed in Uliodon by Koch is con-fa- it was to the New Zealand ctenids and pse-
milial with Uliodon tarantulinus. Griswold chrids (Zealoctenus Forster & Wilton 1973,
(1993) was, nevertheless, correct in consider- Nemoctenus Forster & Wilton 1973, Poaka
ingUliodontarantulinusasamiturgidandal- Forster & Wilton 1973) that ourattentionwas
though the genus name is incorrect, his cla- drawn.Forster&Wilton(1973)hadnoteddif-
disticanalysisisunaffectedbythisrealization. ficulty in applying the concepts of the Cteni-
The Uliodon problem clearly began with dae and Zoridae given by Lehtinen (1967).
conflicts in locality data with the types of U. The diagnosis of the Miturgidae given here
albopunctatus (type species) and U. cervinus. fits that of Zealoctenus, a monotypic genus
Koch (1873: 433) listed them both as ‘‘Neu founded on a single female. Nemoctenus is
Holland’’. However, the types (from NHMW) clearly a zorid.
are labelled ‘Neuseeland:‘‘NOVARA’’-Reise; Poaka has similareyes,carapaceshapeand
Hochstetterdon.’,and‘Neu-Holland(Austral- pattern and abdominal stripes to the miturgid
ien): ‘‘NOVARA’’-Reise; Hochstetter don.’, Diaprograpta and hence was examined. For-
respectively. That is, they were collected on ster & Wilton (1973) found difficulty in plac-
the voyage of the vessel Novara and donated ing both Poaka and Haurokoa but ‘‘dumped’’
by Hochstetter. Hochstetter collected exclu- them uneasily into the Psechridae. On exam-
sively in New Zealand. The apparently con- ination of fresh material in Lincoln Universi-
flicting labels may have lead Koch to assume ty, New Zealand, it is clear that Poaka is an
thematerialwasfromAustralia.Certainly,the amaurobiid resembling the Australian Man-
Novara did visit both New Zealand and Aus- jala Davies 1990 with which it shares thecri-
tralia (Fletcher 1985). However, the material bellum, the numerous strong paired spines on
has the same collection data as the types of tibiae and metatarsi I, II, retrocoxal hymen
the New Zealand hexathelid, Hexathele and carapace shape and pattern and the ab-
hochstetteri Ausserer 1871, also deposited in dominal pattern. Hence, Poaka is transferred
NHMW. In any case, the morphological data totheAmaurobiidae.Equally,unlikethelarge
are compelling: Uliodon albopunctatus and tropical psechrids, Haurokoa lacks claw tufts
Uliodon cervinus are New Zealand species. and does not build a sheet web but hunts on
Our current studies also indicated the pres- low vegetation (Forster & Wilton 1973). The
enceoftheZoropsidaeinAustraliawhichfur- simple form of the palpal bulb and strongly
RAVEN & STUMKAT—AUSTRALASIANMITURGIDAEAND CTENIDAE 107
recurved eye group suggest either Ctenidae withbasalfracture;tibialapophysismoredor-
(cf. Amauropelma Raven & Stumkat 2001)or sal than retrolateral; eyes in two recurved
Tengellidae. In having only a weakly curved rows; 2 or 3 claws; claw tufts present or ab-
front row of eyes and three claws without sent. Cribellum present or absent. Retrocoxal
tufts, the Tengellidae seems the most likely hymendistinctonretrolateralcoxaeI.Spigots
placement. Hence, it is to the Tengellidaethat presentdorsallyonPMSoffemales(Zoropsis,
Haurokoa is tentatively transferred. This pa- Uliodon, Huntia); apical PLS short, domed.
perthenclarifiestherelationshipsofwhatwas Femur I, especially of females, with enlarged
placed in the Miturgidae, Ctenidae and Pse- spine proventrally; at least 5 pairs of strong
chridae in New Zealand and the resulting spines on tibia and 3 pairs on metatarsi I, II
problems generated in Australia. ventrally. Trochanters weakly but distinctly
notched. Labium wider than long.
METHODS
Included Genera.—Zoropsis Simon 1878
Localities.—Cons. Pk. (cid:53) Conservation fromsoutheastAsiaandEurope;TakeoaLeh-
Park;ME.Q(cid:53)mid-easternQueensland;NE.Q tinen 1967 from China and Japan; Uliodon L.
(cid:53)northeastQueensland;NP(cid:53)NationalPark; Koch 1873 from New Zealand; and Huntia
SE.Q (cid:53) south-east Queensland; SF (cid:53) State Gray & Thompson 2001 from Victoria and
Forest. Western Australia; based upon Platnick 1998
Abbreviations.—ALS (cid:53) anterior lateral with addition of new genera.
spinnerets; AME (cid:53) anterior median spinner- Remarks.—Uliodoninae were ‘‘character-
ets; AME (cid:53) anterior median eyes; ALE (cid:53) ized by the exceptional courseof theembolus
anterior lateral eyes; PLS (cid:53) posterior lateral in males’’ (Lehtinen 1967: 317) but that was
spinnerets; PMS (cid:53) posterior median spinner- based on a male that is not confamilial with
ets; PLE (cid:53) posterior lateral eyes; RTA (cid:53) re- Uliodon.Thesubfamilydiagnosisishencein-
trolateral tibial apophysis; RCH (cid:53) retrocoxal correct. At present, the subfamily includes
hymen. onlyUliodonandservesnogroupingfunction
Museums.—NHMW (cid:53) Naturhistorisches and in the absence of a cladogram reflects no
Museum, Wein, Austria; QM (cid:53) Queensland indication of higher relationships. Other sub-
Museum, Brisbane; WAM (cid:53) Western Austra- families listed by Lehtinen (1967) in the Mi-
lianMuseum,Perth;SAM(cid:53)SouthAustralian turgidaehavebeenre-elevatedtofamilies,i.e.
Museum, Adelaide; AMS (cid:53) Australian Mu- Tengellidae, Zoropsidae, or moved to other
seum,Sydney;CAS(cid:53)CaliforniaAcademyof families Amaurobioidinae (Anyphaenidae).
Science(CAS),SanFrancisco;BMNH(cid:53)Nat- Eutichurinae have been moved to the Clu-
ural History Museum (London); QVM (cid:53) bionidae, back to the Miturgidae and most re-
Queen Victoria Museum, Launceston, Tas- cently back to the Clubionidae (Deeleman-
mania. Reinhold 2001; not accepted by Platnick
2001). Griswold (1991)left theGriswoldiinae
SYSTEMATICS
(as Machadoninae) unplaced in the Lycoso-
Family Zoropsidae Bertkau 1882
idea. Lehtinen (1967) included Uliodon, the
Zoropsididae [sic.] Bertkau 1882: 337.
madagascan genera Uduba Simon 1880, Zo-
Uliodoninae Lehtinen 1967: 316. NEW SYNON-
rodictyna Strand 1907, Calamistrula Dahl
YMY.
1908, the African genus RaeciusSimon1892,
Diagnosis.—Male Zoropsidae differ from and from Baltic Amber, Adamator Petrunk-
thoseofMiturgidaeinthepresenceofadense evitch 1942 in the Uliodoninae. Griswold
scopuladorsallyonthepalpalcymbium,pedal (1993)includedUliodoninacladogramofly-
tibiae with basal fracture and the presence of cosoids but did not formalize any nomencla-
a sclerotized shield on the anterior face of the tural conclusions. Relationships are not here
abdomen. Many female zoropsids have spig- extensively explored. However, character dis-
ots evident dorsally on the posterior median tributions are given (Table 1).
spinneretsbutallhavestrongpairedspineson Homann (1971) reported that Miturga has
raised bases on tibiae (5–7 pairs) and at least agrate-shapedtapetum;infact,thatistruefor
3 pairs on metatarsi I, II. Miturga but Homann’s material was not Mi-
Description.—Males with dense scopula turga. In the Forster laboratory, I found a let-
dorsally on male palpal cymbium, pedal tibia ter and photographs by R.R. Forster in which
108 THE JOURNALOF ARACHNOLOGY
(cid:53) e k n
erets;PTF Eutichirina pres./abs.absentabsentabsentabsentpresentprocurved dumbellunnotched2strong-wea digitiform apicalabsent combinatio
nn d-
eriormedianspi Pisauridae absentpresentabsentabsentabsentabsentstronglyrecurve2rowsrectanguloidnotched3weak domed apicalabsent combination
st
o
p d
(cid:53)erets;PMS Tengellidae presentabsentabsentabsentabsentpres./abs.straight-recurve rectanguloidnotched2–3weak domed apicalordorsalpresent combination
n
steriorlateralspin Miturgidae presentabsentabsentabsentstrongpres./abs.straight-recurved rectanguloidnotched2weak domedtodigiti-formapicalabsent RTAwithunscler-otizedregion
o
p
(cid:53)rgoidfamilies.Abbreviations:PLS(cid:53)hymen;RTAretrotibialapophysis. ZoridaeZoropsidae presentpresentabsentabsentabsentpresentabsentpresentabsentstrong-absentpres./abs.pres./abs.stronglyrecurved-straight-recurved2rowsrectanguloidrectanguloidnotchednotched22–3strongstrong domeddomed apicaldorsalabsentpresent combinationmaletibiaewithbasalcrack
haractersofmitu(cid:53)CHretrocoxal Ctenidae presentabsentabsentpres./abs.strong-absentpresentrecurved-2rows rectanquloidnotched2strong domed apicalabsent ALEhighnearPME
cR
Table1.—Diagnosticpredistaltarsalfracture; RCHPTFTibialCrack,maleCymbialscopula,maleLegscopulaClawtuftsBlackeyerow Maxillae,shapeTrochantersClawsTibial&metatarsalspines1,2PLS,apicalsegmentshapePMSfemale,spigotsInterlockinglobes,maletegulumAutapomorphy
RAVEN & STUMKAT—AUSTRALASIANMITURGIDAEAND CTENIDAE 109
it was clear that the material sent to Homann and males have a much smaller tegulum and
labelled Miturga was the New Zealand Ulio- a small unsclerotized median apophysis. The
don. Grate-shapedtapetaarealsofoundinthe epigyne figured by Koch’s artist faithfully
Zoropsidae (Griswold 1993). rended the epigynal plug and hence partially
Gray & Thompson (2001) described two obscured the detail of the epigyne.
new lycosoid genera, Bengalla Gray & Forster had consistently considered species
Thompson 2001 and Huntia Gray & Thomp- here placed in Uliodon as Miturga (e.g. For-
son 2001. Bengalla will be dealt with else- ster & Forster 1999). However, he had begun
where but is here considered to fit Griswold’s a revision of that group in New Zealand with
(1991) concept of the Tengellidae. We have RJR. As with many spider taxa in New Zea-
examined material of Huntia. Males have the land,theZoropsidaeareverydiverseandmay
tibial crack, the cymbial scopula, and a scler- constituteseveralgenera.Hence,theabovedi-
otized shield on the anterior face of the ab- agnosisisbaseduponmalesandfemalesfrom
domen and both males and females have the the Auckland region and presently considered
strong paired spines on tibiae I and II. Fe- conspecific with U. albopunctatus.
males of Huntia deepensis Gray&Thompson
Family Miturgidae Simon 1885
2001 have spigots dorsally on thePMS.Also,
like other undescribed Australian zoropsids, Diagnosis.—Differs from Zoridae in males
Huntia has a tarsal rod and tegular-subtegular having tibial apophysis with an unsclerotized
interlocking lobes. Gray & Thompson (2001) zone and from the Ctenidae and Zoropsidae
considered the longer labium and absence of in lacking strong paired spines on tibiae and
claw tufts reason to exclude the genus from metatarsi I, II.
the Zoropsidae. The labium of Zoropsis spi- Two claws, true claw tufts present or scop-
nimana (female, BCB colln. examined) is ula extending around claws; weak paired
about as long as wide and the character isnot spinesventrallyontibiaeandmetatarsiI&II,
considered sufficient to exclude a genus from basally divided median apophysis, RTA with
the family. The absence of claw tufts in Hun- unsclerotized zone and maxillae rounded rec-
tia simply places it lower on the cladogram tanguloid with short diagonal groove. Retro-
than Zoropsis. coxal hymen distinct on I. Eight similarly-
A more complete examination of the rela- sizedeyesintworows;fromabove,frontrow
tionships of zoropsids will be presented with straighttoslightlyrecurved,backrowslightly
ourpendingrevisionofthegroupinAustralia. procurved, straight to clearly recurved; tape-
tum grate-shaped. Females with spigots only
Uliodon L. Koch 1873
apical on PMS.
Uliodon L. Koch 1873: 431, type species Uliodon Included genera.—Australian region; Mi-
albopunctatus L. Koch 1873 by subsequent des-
turga,DiaprograptaSimon1909,Zealoctenus
ignation of Simon 1892: 113.
Forster & Wilton 1973. Middle East; Procho-
Diagnosis.—Two claws but no true tufts. ra Simon 1885. North & South America;
Leg scopula dense on tarsi of males and fe- Teminius Keyserling 1887.
males. Males: cymbium with dorsal scopula; Remarks.—Australian species currently
tibial apophysis in dorsal region of tibia; te- placed in the otherwise Neotropical genus
gulummassiveandextendingoverbaseoftib- Odo Keyserling 1887 are all clearly consid-
ia; interlocking lobes with subtegulum subtle, ered miturgids but are not correctly placed in
if present; median apophysis an unsclerotized Odo.
vane. Females: epigynal plugs present; PMS The Eutichurinae lack the grate-shaped ta-
with line of spigots on dorsal surface. petum, critical for their inclusion in the Ly-
Species Included.—Uliodonalbopunctatus cosoidea (Griswold 1993) and, unlike the ly-
L. Koch 1873, Uliodon cervinus L. Koch, cosoids, have maxillae modified with an ectal
1873, Zora frenatus L. Koch 1873. constriction as in Clubionidae. The character
Distribution.—Known only from New used to align the Eutichurinaeand Miturgidae
Zealand. wastheelongateapicalarticleofthePLS(Ra-
Remarks.—Uliodon differs from the Aus- m´ırez, Bonaldo, & Brescovit 1997) which is
tralian Huntia in the complete absence of a simplyasynapomorphyofthegenusMiturga.
third claw, the presence of dense leg scopula Hence, Deeleman-Reinhold’s (2001) restora-
110 THE JOURNALOF ARACHNOLOGY
withsmalldistinctanteriorprocess;large,dis-
tinct retrocoxal hymen on coxae I;trochanter-
al notches ca. 1.5 x wider than deep on IV,
shallower on I; no feathery hairs. Spines: tib-
iae I & II v2.2.2 not strong or overlapping;
metatarsi I, II v2 long basal; prolateral spines
on tibia I, II; proventral spine on femora.
Scopula: dense on tarsi I-IV and metatarsi I-
III, weak on IV, also present as two lateral
fringes in distal half of tibiae I, II. Tricho-
bothrial base laminate, collariform; cuticle
Figure 1.—Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch), finelygrooved.Claws:4–5teethonlong,sim-
habitus. ilar, paired claws; unpaired claw absent.
Dense, wide tufts distally fused and reach to
lower edge of claws. Spinnerets: colulus, an
tion of the Eutichurinae to the Clubionidae is hirsute triangle; ALS conical; PLS basal seg-
upheld (contra Platnick 2001). ment as long as ALS but more slender with
triangular coniform apical segment; PMS
Subfamily Miturginae Simon 1885
much smaller than PLS; ALS with 2 major
Mituliodon new genus
ampullatespigots;8–10pyriforms.Malepalp:
Type species.—Zora tarantulina L. Koch tibia with flange-like distal retrolateral tibial
1873. apophysis with diagonal ridge and soft tissue
Diagnosis.—Differs from Diaprograpta beside that and distal triangular flat process
and Zealoctenus in the extensive conductor in beyond; cymbium wide, flattened, basal and
males and the form of the epigyne in females basolateral margins wide, apical cone short
and from all other described Australian mi- without ventral groove; long wide shallow
turgid genera in the presence of true claw groove from base almost to tip of cymbium
tufts. As more miturgids are described, the alongretrolateraledge;embolussmall,gourd-
flattened form of the cymbium with retrola- shaped, retrobasally reflexing back basally to
teral flare and the very extensive conductor be long and filiform around back of tegulum
will provide further distinguishing characters. along long conductor; median apophysis has
Description.—Color: Carapace yellow slender soft junction with embolus and with
brown with darker banding medially, around small, apical, retrolateral hook; tegulum n-
edges and along striae. Legs yellow brown shaped,distal,flatwithlargegroovedconduc-
without pattern; abdomen fawn brown with tor sweeping up from near embolus base to
paired central dark spots; ventrally blackfield near tip of median apophysis; subtegulum
with line of white dots breaking into two big- wide, transverse, basal; slight scopula and
ger dots posteriorly; 2 large spots anteriorly thick setae behind cymbial tip.
and 2 in front of spinnerets. Etymology.—An arbitary combination of
Carapace low, with low broad caput; fovea letters formed from Miturga and Uliodon; the
long, straight; silver and brown hairs enhance gender is masculine.
pattern; 3 bands of silver hair between eyes Included species.—Mituliodon tarantuli-
of back row. Eyes: 8 in 2 rows, both rows nus (L. Koch 1873).
gently recurved; front row eyes smaller than Distribution.—As for species.
those of back row; ALE each just past inside Relationships.—Among the known Mitur-
edgeofPLE;frontroweyessetclose,ca.0.7– gidae (excluding the Eutichurinae), Mitulio-
1.0 diameter apart; back row eyes ca. 1 di- don, Diaprograpta and Zealoctenus are un-
ameter apart. ALE look to side. Tapetum usual in possessing true movable claw tufts
grate-shaped. Chelicerae small;teethformula: which are on separate pads beside the claws.
2r,3p.Sternumscallopedshield;setation:uni- In Miturga, claw tufts are absent; the scopula
form cover of bristles and hair. Labium short. simplyextendsbeyondthetarsaltip.Noother
Maxillae with deeply narrowed base, almost miturgids, however, have the very extensive
diamond-shaped,convergingtobaseandapex conductor. Mituliodon shares with other mi-
from midpoint; apex rounded. Legs: coxae turgids the basally divided median apophysis
RAVEN & STUMKAT—AUSTRALASIANMITURGIDAEAND CTENIDAE 111
andanunsclerotizedzoneonthetibialapoph- in posterior half paired small dark flecking;
ysis. A revision of the Australian Miturgidae ventrally with a black field; behind epigastric
will deal more fully with the relationships. furrow two large white spots, lateral of those
From fresh material of Zora marmorea 4 in a diamond-pattern posterior of that a tri-
Hogg 1896 and comparison with thetypes(in angle of 3 white spots pointed centrally; legs
AMS and the Museum of Victoria), we have orange brown without annulations, scopula
established that the species is a miturgid but makesdistalhalfofmetatarsiIandIIandtarsi
does not belong in Mituliodon or any de- I,IIdarker;sternumandcoxaeorangebrown;
scribed genera. It will be placed elsewhere in maxillae, labium and chelicerae dark red
a pending revision. brown.
Carapace pear-shaped, rounded laterally
Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch 1873)
withdistinctbutroundedcephalicportion;ca-
new combination
putarchedbutgraduallydefined;foveabegins
(Figs. 1–11)
at end of caput and extends for lastportionof
Zora tarantulina L. Koch 1873: 445; Simon 1897:
thoraxandslightlydownposteriorslope;light
106.
pilosity with cuticle evident in all parts; clyp-
ZoraaustraliensisL.Koch1873:441.NEWSYN-
eus steep but short; chilum of 2 distinct tri-
ONYMY.
Zora torva L. Koch 1873: 444. NEW SYNONY- angles.
MY. Eyes occupy 0.75 of head-width; front row
Miturga maculata Hogg 1900: 109. NEW SYN- recurved; from above AME set just out from
ONYMY. cephalothorax margin; AME on mound look
Syspira rubicunda Hogg 1900: 108. NEW SYN- forward and to side; ALE on mound highest
ONYMY. in front look to front and side; PME not on
Miturga velox Hickman 1930: 114. NEW SYN- mound look up and to front; PLE on low
ONYMY.
moundlooktosideandup;alleyesofsimilar
Types.—Zora tarantulina: ZMH: Museum size,AMEfurtherfromALEthanAME;like-
Godeffroy no. 8190: holotype male, Port wise PME and PLE. Back eye row recurved
Mackay, Queensland, Australia. and almost an eye diameter wide from front
Zora australiensis: ZMH: holotype, sub- row. From in front, front row centers—
adult female, Wollongong, New South Wales, straight with ALE (slightly larger) margins
Australia. above and end below those of AME.
Zora torva: holotype, male premolt, ‘‘Aus- Cheliceraewithlowbutdistinctboss;fangs
tralia’’,Thorellcollection,inRMS,examined. moderately long. Serrula a distinct curved
Miturga maculata: BMNH 1907.2.24.1–5 line. Maxillae almost tear-shaped with 2 gla-
(including 1 juvenile of Miturga gilva L. brous regions ventrally and proventrally near
Koch):2juvenilefemales,3females,2males, posterior apex; cylindrical in cross-section.
Mt Macedon, Victoria, Australia: intact male Labium extends barely to half length of max-
here designated as lectotype, remainder as illae, broad. Sternum roundly cordate with el-
paralectotypes. evated ridges opposite intercoxal spaces; no
Syspira rubicunda: BMNH 1907.2.24.11– extension between any coxae.
12: holotype female, paratype male, ‘‘Chen- Legs: coxae rounded, all of similar size
iston’’, Mt Macedon, Victoria, Australia. withsimilarflangetoMiturga.Trochantersall
Miturga velox: holotype male, paratype fe- short, similarly (I–IV) and deeply notched.
male, Launceston, Tasmania, Australia, QVM Relative lengths ofleg segments:femurabout
13: 7325 and 7324, examined. equal to tibia longer than metatarsus much
Description.—Female: (QM S36672) Col- longer than tarsus (cid:53) patella except IV, meta-
or and Pattern: Union Jack pattern on yellow tarsus longer than all. Pilosity: moderately
brown carapace: U-shaped darker areas (of long black bristles and fine hairnot obscuring
hair) radiating from fovea along each inter- cuticle on legs; no evident clustering.
strial ridge; longitudinal bands of darkerhairs Scopula: dense, obscuring cuticle on meta-
oncaputbrokenbysinuousstreaksarisingbe- tarsi and tarsi I, II; laterally with scoop-like
tween each pair of PME–PLE and PME– ridges of hair on tibiae I, II; thinnerbutentire
PME; curved area of silver hairs from be- and full tarsi and metatarsi III divided medi-
tween lateral eyes around PLE. Abdomen ally by setae on tarsi IV; 3 bands for 0.75 of
fawn brown with black flecking laterally and metatarsi IV.
112 THE JOURNALOF ARACHNOLOGY
Figures 2–4.—Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch). 2, female. 3, 4, male. 2, 3, cephalothorax and ab-
domen, dorsal view. 4, abdomen, ventral view.
Spines. I: fe p2d2r2w, pa 0, ti v2.2.2, me Claws: palpal, long curved with 4–5 long
v2 long, basal. II: fe p4d2r2w, pa 0, ti v2.2.2, teeth. Long paired claws with 3–5 teeth; tufts
me v2 long, basal. III: fe p4d3r4, pa 0, ti absentonfemalepalp,smallelsewhere,notas
p2d2r2v2.2.2,mep3r1v2long,basal(cid:49)1mid- high as scopula and just covering teeth on
distal. Palp: fe p1d4, pa p1, ti p3r2, ta p3r2. claws; claws set well above tufts.
RAVEN & STUMKAT—AUSTRALASIANMITURGIDAEAND CTENIDAE 113
Figures 5–8.—Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch). 5, male, tibia, cymbium & bulb, ventral left. 6, 7,
epigyne. 8, vulva.
Trichobothria: 2 bands on each side dorsal- teriorlobesplusmedialridge.Copulatoryfos-
ly of tibiae; trichobothria as long basally on saeliebehindanteriorlobes;alargeductfolds
tibia as distally; single line dorsally on tarsi slowlyandthenreducesindiameterandforms
with distal trichobothria longer. complexly folded basal portion; fertilization
Spinnerets: all of similar length but PLS ducts basal.
smaller in diameter; PMS cylindrical; colulus Male (QM S36201) (like female except as
a small setose area. follows): Spines. I: fe p3d3r4, pa 0, ti
Epigyne: Two lateral lobes with inner an- p3d1r2v6, me v2 basal. II: fe p4d3r4, pa 0, ti
114 THE JOURNALOF ARACHNOLOGY
Figures 9, 10.—Mituliodon tarantulinus (L. Koch), male. 9, cymbium & bulb, ventral left, scanning
electron micrograph with tibial apophysis (inset). 10, tarsus, lateral viewshowingdifferentorientationof
hairs in claw tufts and scopula.
p2r2v6, me v2 basal. III: fe p5d3r4, pa 0, ti (Fig. 11). It is known from the Wet Tropics
p2d2r2v6, me p4r3v2 basal(cid:49) 1 distal. IV: fe (Thornton Peak) in north Queensland, westto
p4d3r3, pa 0, ti p2d3r2v6, me p5r5v2.2.1. south central Queensland, and south along
Palp: As for genus. coastal and near coastal areas through New
Remarks.—As first revisers, the senior of South Wales, Victoria, eastern Tasmania,
the synonymous species in L. Koch (1873) is southern South Australia and in the south-
takenbecausetheholotypeisamale,themost westerncornerofWesternAustralia.Ithasnot
distinctive of the sexes. been recorded from the Northern Territory. It
Variation.—Throughout its range Mitulio- is also known from Timor. The only common
don tarantulinus is very consistent in sexual factor that may explain its distribution is the
morphology with the biggest variation occur- presence of a litter layer of some depth. Hab-
ring in Western Australia where a subtle dif- itats with such a layer occur in rainforest,
ference in the shape of the apical portion of semi-evergreen vine thicket and eucalypt for-
the tibial apophysis is sometimes discernible. ests but not desert or grassland. The hypoth-
The pattern on the dorsal carapace is effec- esis needs further testing, however.
tively a black Union Jack on a mottled brown Biology.—Mituliodon is litter dwelling and
background. The darkness of the background nocturnally active. However, when a forest is
varies making the radiating lines less distinct subjected to vibration (at any time but diur-
in some specimens. The white pattern on the nally most easily seen) from a slowly idling
blackfieldontheventralabdomenvariesfrom big engine (e.g. tractor or diesel 4x4) a num-
two convergent white linesto a seriesofdots. ber of spiders become very active (first re-
Neither of these variations shows any clear portedbyD.Hirst,XIIInternationalCongress
correlation with habitat, distribution or other of Arachnology, Brisbane 1992, Special
morphology. However, around Adelaide, Methodsmeeting).Onanumberofoccasions,
South Australia, the sternum of Mituliodon RJR has noted that larger Mituliodon can be
tarantulinus (where the two color forms are seen running across the litter from over 20 m
sympatric) is a deep burgundy red whereas directly towards the vibration source.
elsewhere it is light to dark brown. Neither juveniles nor adults are taken com-
Distribution and Habitat.—Mituliodon monlyinvegetationsweepsnoraretheyoften
tarantulinus is the most widely distributed seen off the ground at night. Hence, any sig-
species of the known Australian miturgids nificance attributed to the presence of claw