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Proshermacha credo sp. nov.
Holotype
AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: ♂, Credo Station, site Cs 4, 30°16'S, 120°42'E, 6 September 2011, M.S. Harvey, T.A. Parkin (WAM T114998).
Paratypes
AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 1 ♂, Credo Station, ca. 100 km NW. of Kalgoorlie, 30°21'S, 120°43'E, 30 August 2011, M.A. Cowan (WAM T116019); 1 ♂, Credo Station, site Cs 4, 30°19'S, 120°42'E, 4 September 2011, M.A. Cowan, T.A. Parkin (WAM T115544); 1 ♂, same data except 5 September 2011 (WAM T118993); 1 ♂, same data except 30 August 2011, T.A. Parkin (WAM T118636).
Other Material
AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 1 ♂, ca. 44.8 km SSE. of Menzies, 30°05'S, 121°10'E, 1–9 November 2018, J. Turpin (WAM T149155); 1 ♂, same data (WAM T149156); 1 ♀, Mt Ida, 100 km WSW. of Leonora, site MI-07-7C, 29°14'S, 120°26'E, 26 July 2008, M. Quinn, G. Murray (WAM T110238); 1 ♂, same data except site MI-08-8D, 29°13'S, 120°26'E, 29 July 2008 (WAM T110249).
Diagnosis
Diagnoses within the genus Proshermacha are problematic because males have only been described for two of the ten described species (P. tepperi and P. wilga), and informative images are also only available in the literature for two species (P. armigera and P. wilga). Until holotypes of all previously described species are examined, diagnoses within the genus will be limited. However, because P. credo sp. nov. is over 400 km from the type locality of all described species, and in a different bioregion, we can be confident that it is new and warrants description. Below we provide a preliminary diagnosis of P. credo sp. nov. from the few species for which images are available in the literature.
Males of Proshermacha credo sp. nov., can be tentatively distinguished from males attributed to P. tepperi (based on drawings in Main 1964, 1976) by the pedipalp tibia, which is thinner and less ovoid (Figs 10–13). They can be distinguished from P. wilga by possessing a much thinner tibia and metatarsus of leg I and a more porrect tibial megaspur (Figs 16, 17). Males are currently unknown for all other described species of Proshermacha.
Females of Proshermacha credo sp. nov., can be distinguished from P. armigera by their spermathecae, which are less elongate (Fig. 29; cf. Harvey et al. 2020, fig. 156), and from P. wilga by the spermathecae being only moderately medially directed (Fig. 29). Females of P. credo cannot currently be distinguished from other species of Proshermacha for which adequate diagnoses, descriptions and images are not yet available.
Description – male holotype (WAM T114998)
Dimensions (mm): total body length (with chelicerae, but excluding spinnerets) 19.6. Carapace length 8.4, width 6.9; abdomen length 8.2, width 5.2. Leg I: femur 6.7; patella 4.1; tibia 5.3; metatarsus 5.5; tarsus 2.9.
Colour (in alcohol) (Figures 1–17): carapace uniformly orange-brown; leg I bicoloured, patella and tibia orange-brown, femur, metatarsus and tarsus yellow brown; legs II to IV uniformly yellow brown; chelicerae red-brown; ventral prosoma tan-brown; abdomen dorsally grey-brown with pale mottled chevrons and ventrally pale yellow-brown.
Carapace, chelicerae, abdomen (Figures 1 – 6). Carapace 1.22 x longer than broad; pilose; silver hairs present, with bristles centrally and on clypeus; clypeal edge slightly convex; fovea straight. Eye group rectangular (width/length 1.94), on distinct tubercle. Chelicerae without rastellum. Abdomen 1.58 x longer than wide, lightly pilose.
Mouthparts and sternum (Figures 7 – 9). Labium width/length 1.94, without cuspules. Left maxilla with 60-65 cuspules, confined to medial edge. Coxae without cuspules. Sternum length/width 1.09; with setae over entire surface; with 3 pairs of sigilla, each pair increasing in size from anterior to posterior; all pairs close to sternum margin; posterior pair thin and elongate.
Pedipalp (Figures 10–13): tibia cylindrical, narrow length/width 3.31; retrolateral face with 5 strong spines clustered in distal half, ventral face with 1 strong spines proximally, prolateral face with 1 strong spine distally, dorsal face with 2 strong spines positioned proximally and medially; cymbium elongate, length/width 3.78, medially constricted and broadest distally; scopula present distally; bulb ovoid; embolus straight, thin, about 1.7x longer than bulb.
Leg I (Figures 14–17): Tibia I moderately thickened; with large megaspur; TIL/TID 4.15; TIS/TIL 0.63; TISH/TID 0.85; metatarsus incrassate, with proximal excavation; MIL/ MID 6.55; MIPEL/MIL 0.53; scopulae present on tarsus and distal metatarsus.
Description – female (WAM T110238)
Dimensions (mm): total body length (with chelicerae, but excluding spinnerets) 28.3. Carapace length 9.2, width 7.7; abdomen length 13.8, width 8.8. Leg I: femur 7.3; patella 4.3; tibia 5.6; metatarsus 5.5; tarsus 2.8.
Colour (in alcohol) (Figures 18–29): carapace uniformly orange-brown; legs, chelicerae, and ventral prosoma concolorous; ventral prosoma tan-brown; abdomen dorsally grey-brown with pale mottled chevrons and ventrally pale yellow-brown.
Carapace, chelicerae, abdomen (Figures 18–23). Carapace 1.18 x longer than broad; virtually glabrous; clypeal edge slightly convex; fovea straight. Eye group rectangular (width/length 1.97), on distinct tubercle. Chelicerae without rastellum. Abdomen 1.56 x longer than wide, lightly pilose.
Mouthparts and sternum (Figures 24–26). Labium width/length 2.14, without cuspules. Left maxilla with 75-80 cuspules, confined to medial edge. Coxae without cuspules. Sternum length/width 1.09; with setae over entire surface; with 3 pairs of sigilla, each pair increasing in size from anterior to posterior; all pairs close to sternum margin; posterior pair thin and elongate.
Leg I (Figures 27–28): Spination, femur 2 (1PL, 1 D), patella 2 (2PL), tibia 8 (3PL, 1V and 4RL), metatarsus 7 (4PL, 3RL), tarsus 0, total 19; metatarsus length/width 6.74; scopulae present on tarsus and metatarsus.
Genitalia (Figure 29): Each spermathecae with a single receptacle; each receptacle elongate (length about 3x width at crown), gently curving from an antero-lateral angle at base to an antero-medial angle distally, with a globular crown.
Remarks
This species was included in the recent molecular phylogeny of the Anamidae under the code name Proshermacha 'MYG435'.
Sequence data
The following sequence data are available on GenBank for this species (Harvey et al. 2018): Holotype male, WAM T114998: COI (MG800163), 16S rRNA (MG799960), 18S rRNA (MG800033), 28S rRNA (MG800110), H3 (MG800296), EF1 (MG800234).
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Distribution
Proshermacha credo sp. nov. occurs in the transition zone between the Calgoordie and Murchison bioregions (Figure 30). The habitat in this region is comprised of mallee eucalypt woodland with occasional larger trees such as Eucalyptus loxophleba.
Etymology
The specific epithet is a noun in apposition in reference to the type locality of this species on Credo Station, Western Australia.