Sarax singaporae Gravely 1911

Sarax singaporae Gravely, 1911

Fig. 103; Table 8

Sarax sarawakensis singaporae Gravely, 1911: 37–38.

Phrynichosarax singapurae – Gravely 1915b: 440, fig. 5. — Buxton 1917: 3.

Phrynicosarax singapurae – Mello-Leitão 1931: 53.

Sarax singaporae – Harvey 2003: 8. — Seiter & Wolff 2014: 233.

Diagnosis

This species may be separated from other species of Sarax in Southeast Asia and Oceania by the following combination of characters: uniform coloration without distinct stripes; female genital plaque flattened posteromedially; basal segment of chelicera with tooth on retrolateral surface, opposite to bifid tooth; leg IV basitibia with three pseudo-articles.

Sarax singaporae differs from S. gravelyi sp. nov. in the color and the number of pseudo-articles in the basitibia of leg IV.

Etymology

Refers to Singapore, the island state in which the species was first collected.

Type material

Syntypes SINGAPORE • 2 ♀♀; Singapore Botanical Garden; 1910; H.H. Ridley leg.; SMF 64594 [examined].

Additional material

SINGAPORE • 2 ♀♀; Jurong Bird Park; S. Huber leg.; 17 Nov. 1999; leaf litter; AMCC [LP 1964A] • 1 juv.; Bukit Timah Nature Reserve; 1.355° N, 103.78° E; 9 May 2005; W. Maddison, D. Li, I. Agnarsson and J.X. Zhang leg.; beating vegetation; AMCC [LP 4761].

Redescription

CARAPACE. Tegument dark brown; six anterior setae; frontal process short and triangular. Small granules densely scattered between ocular triads and among sulci; median eyes and median ocular tubercle well developed; pair of setae on median ocular tubercle; lateral eyes well developed, pale, with seta lateral to lateral ocular triad; lateral ocular triad near carapace margin; curved carina between ocular triads and carapace margin.

STERNUM. Tritosternum projected anteriorly with typical setation, long, surpassing base of pedipalp coxae; other sternal platelets narrow and projected, with pair of setae anteriorly on plaque and some smaller setae posteriorly; pentasternum with six setae near anterior region of plaque.

OPISTHOSOMA. Ventral sacs and ventral sacs cover well developed.

GENITALIA. Female genital operculum with short setae posteromedially; medial region flat with slender setae apically; gonopod finger-like with small invagination apically, unsclerotized basally. Male genitalia unknown.

CHELICERAE. Retrolateral surface of basal segment with short tooth opposite to bifid tooth; retrolateral surface of claw with row of setae basally to medially; claw with two or three teeth; more than two rows of several setae on prolateral surface of basal segment; bifid tooth on basal segment with dorsal cusp larger than ventral cusp.

PEDIPALPS. Coxae without seta encircled by round carina and with two setae on margin. Femur with four or five dorsal spines and four ventral spines; two prominent setiferous tubercles between dorsal spine 1 and proximal margin; long spine between ventral spine 1 and proximal margin, two-thirds length of spine 1. Patella with five dorsal spines in primary series; prominent spine distal to spine I; four ventral spines; two small setiferous tubercles between spine I and distal margin. Tibia with ventral spine distally and two or three setae between spine and distal margin. Tarsus with two dorsal spines, distal spine longer, about one-fifth length of tarsus, proximal spine half length of distal spine; cleaning organ with 26 or 27 setae in ventral row.

LEGS. Tibia of leg I with 23–27 articles; tarsus I with 41 articles; first and second tarsal articles equal in length. Leg IV basitibia with three pseudo-articles, with sclerotized, denticulate border at apex of articles; trichobothrium bt situated in proximal third of pseudo-article; distitibia trichobothrium bc situated closer to bf than to s bf, sc and sf series each with six trichobothria.

Measurements

See Table 8.

Distribution

Known only from Singapore.

Natural history

Type series found under bricks in the leaf litter (Gravely 1911).

Remarks

Gravely (1911) examined several specimens, including two ovigerous females, but only one female syntype was located at SMF. The whereabouts of the other specimens is unknown.