Diplocephalus parentalis n. sp.

(Figs 9-11)

TYPE MATERIAL. — Holotype: China, Zhejiang Province, Fenghua City, Shangsong Village, Mt Long’ao, 29.92°N, 121.00°E, 15.X.2006, coll. Y. Song & X. Yin, ♂ (MNHN).

Paratype: same data as for holotype, 1 ♀ (MNHN).

ETYMOLOGY. — Specific name from Latin parentalis = parental, in order to express the first author’s sincere appreciation to her parents for their collecting specimens of this new species.

DISTRIBUTION. — Known from Mt Long’ao in Zhejiang Province, China (Fig. 12).

DESCRIPTION

Male

Total length 2.23. Carapace 1.11 long, 0.86 wide, bright reddish-brown, bearing cephalic pits within the post-ocular sulci (Fig. 10B); several moderately long hairs scattered in the ocular area and on the clypeus (Fig. 10A). Abdomen dark grey. Clypeus 0.21 high. AME interdistance 0.05, ALE 0.08, PME 0.08, PLE 0.09, AME interdistance 0.50 times their diameter, AME-ALE interdistance 0.62 times ALE diameter, PME interdistance 0.62 times their diameter, PME-PLE interdistance 1.20 times PLE diameter. Sternum 0.57 long, 0.61 wide. Coxa IV interdistance 1.00 times their width. Chelicerae with 6 promarginal teeth, 5 retromarginal teeth (Fig. 10H). Tibia I 7.47 times longer than deep. Tm I 0.55, Tm IV absent. Dorsal spine on tibia of leg IV: 1-1-1-1; dorsal spine on patella of leg IV: 1-1-1-1. Leg measurements: I: 2.98 (0.88, 0.24, 0.70, 0.63, 0.53); II: 3.04 (0.88, 0.26, 0.73, 0.68, 0.51); III: 2.51 (0.71, 0.25, 0.57, 0.57, 0.42); IV: 3.13 (0.87, 0.25, 0.80, 0.69, 0.52).

Length of femur and patella in ratio 5:2. Tibia curved retrolaterally to form a long prolateral apophysis whose apex armed with a tuft of thick bristles and distal part swollen, as well as lots of papillae on the mesal surface; with 1 retrolateral and 1 prolateral trichobothrium (Fig. 9D). Paracymbium spiral with terminal part hooked (Fig. 9B). Cymbium with a long and wide retrobasal process, as well as a longitudinal narrow ridge near the base (Fig. 9B). Tegulum distal to subtegulum in unexpanded palp. Protegulum vestigial (Fig.9A). Suprategulum armed with a typical dentiform marginal apophysis and a long curved upwards distal apophysis, slightly bifurcate distally and strongly sclerotized basally to shape triangular teeth (Fig. 10C). Embolic membrane similar to that of D. mirabilis (Fig. 10D). Radix large, with a transversally membranous extension at the base; outer rectangular margins strongly sclerotized to be dark black (Fig. 10E). Tailpiece relatively long, slightly upwards, ending in being rounded and slightly concave in the center (Fig. 10E). Embolus short, curved backwards to the dorsal side (Fig. 9B).

Female

Total length 2.44. Carapace 1.11 long, 0.81 wide, similar to male in general appearance and coloration, but without cephalic pits and sulci. Abdomen light grey. Clypeus 0.19 high. AME interdistance 0.05, ALE 0.10, PME 0.08, PLE 0.08, AME interdistance 0.38 times their diameter, AME-ALE interdistance 0.29 times ALE diameter, PME interdistance 0.52 times their diameter, PME-PLE interdistance 0.70 times PLE diameter.Sternum 0.61 long, 0.58 wide. Coxa IV interdistance 1.04 times their width. Chelicerae with 6 promarginal teeth, 5 retromarginal teeth. Tibia I 7.50 times longer than deep. Tm I 0.55, Tm IV absent. Dorsal spine on tibia of leg IV: 1-1-1-1; dorsal spine on patella of leg IV: 1-1-1-1. Leg measurements: I: 3.25 (0.94, 0.29, 0.84, 0.69, 0.48); II: 3.08 (0.89, 0.27, 0.75, 0.68, 0.48); III: 2.64 (0.74, 0.27, 0.60, 0.63, 0.40); IV: 3.31 (0.95, 0.28, 0.89, 0.76, 0.43).

Epigynum with a long fissure in the middle (Fig. 10G).Ventral plate armed with column-shaped complex anteriorly (Fig. 10F). Dorsal plate totally covered by ventral plate in ventral view (Fig. 10G), with its anterior part extended dorsally to form a cone-shaped apophysis in lateral view (Fig. 11C). Copulatory openings formed at the anterior end of the fissure (Fig. 10G). Copulatory ducts enclosed in a slightly sclerotized capsule, bearing large cavums (Fig. 11B). The path of copulatory ducts is shown in Figure 11A, B. Fertilization ducts thin, mesally oriented (Fig.11A). Spermathecae U-shaped, separated by a distance of more than 2 times their length (Fig. 11B).

REMARKS

Embolic division of D. parentalis n. sp. seems to belong to the genus Savignia in having a slightly curved and directed backwards embolus, but in fact this new species bears no anterior radical process of embolic division and its vulva is totally different from that of S. frontata. Its vulva is very similar to that of A. humilis and D. foraminifer. The copulatory ducts of D. parentalis n. sp. are very long and wide, but extremely short and totally fused with spermathecae in S. frontata. In addition, this new species is closely related to the Japanese D. hispidulus, so I place it in the genus Diplocephalus to serve a full revision of the genus Diplocephalus in the future. Due to its similarity in genital conformation to Savignia and Diplocephalus species, D. parentalis n. sp. may represent an intermediate species whose anterior radical process of somewhat T-shaped embolic division reduced, while the complexity of the copulatory ducts increased to shape the type of Diplocephalus species.

Even though D. parentalis n. sp. is particularly closely related to D. hispidulus (Saito & Ono 2001: figs 88-91), it can be still distinguished by the under developed embolic membrane of the embolic division, the distally swollen prolateral palpal tibial apophysis, the small but complicated dorsal plate of the epigynum, and slightly different path of copulatory ducts of female vulva. Furthermore, those two related species can be easily separated from all the congeners by the shape of embolic division and presence of a tuft of thick bristles at the apex of male palpal prolateral tibial apophysis.

Specimens of D. parentalis n. sp. were found under leaf litter of shaded area in the evergreen broad-leaved forest in subtropics.