Skip to main content

Kavanaugh sac spider (Trachelas kavanaughi) and distended stomach sac spider (Trachelas ventriosus)

Kavanaugh sac spider (Trachelas kavanaughi) and distended stomach sac spider (Trachelas ventriosus)

NEWS - Two new spider species were described from China: Kavanaugh sac spider (Trachelas kavanaughi sp. nov. ♀) and distended stomach sac spider (Trachelas ventriosus sp. nov. ♀), while a male of Gaoligong mountain sac spider (Trachelas gaoligongensis Jin, Yin & Zhang 2017) was described for the first time.

Trachelas L. Koch, 1872 is the most species-rich genus in Trachelidae with 91 species distributed worldwide, including 13 species in China (mostly distributed in southwest China). There are 7 new species of Trachelas described and 1 new record reported in China recently.

During the examination of spider specimens collected from Yunnan Province in 2007 with 2 new species, Trachelas ventriosus sp. nov. (♀) and T. kavanaughi sp. nov. (♀). The study also identified males of T. gaoligongensis.

T. gaoligongensis is named after the Gaoligong Mountains where the type site was found, with a distribution in Yunnan, China. Males resemble T. bomiensis Jin & Mi 2024, but differ in that the embolus is enlarged at the base and elongated at the tip (vs. elongated at the base and with two spirals at the tip).

The retrolateral tibial apophysis is pointed toward the dorsal side of the cymbium (vs. absent). The retrolateral patellar apophysis is longitudinally bar-shaped, covered with hairy setae distally (vs. distally bent transversely toward the tibia and without hairy setae).

Females of T. gaoligongensis resemble T. kavanaughi sp. nov., but differ in that the atrium is approximately as long as it is wide (vs. wider than long). The copulatory opening is posterior to the genitalia (vs. anterior to the genitalia). The primary spermathecae are oval (vs. round). The secondary spermathecae are more than twice as wide as the primary spermathecae (vs. narrower than the primary spermathecae).

T. kavanaughi is named in honor of the collector of the type specimen, D. H. Kavanaugh, curator emeritus of the California Academy of Sciences. Distribution is known only from the type locality. Females resemble T. gaoligongensis, but differ in that the atrium is wider than it is long (vs. approximately as long as it is wide).

The copulatory opening is anterior to the genitalia (vs. posterior). Primary spermathecae are round (vs. oval). Distance between secondary spermathecae is narrower than the primary spermathecae (vs. more than twice as wide as the primary spermathecae).

T. ventriosus is named in honor of the Latin word “ventriosus” (pot-bellied) referring to its large belly. Distribution is known only from the type locality. Females resemble T. fasciae Zhang, Fu & Zhu 2009, but differ in that the atrium occupies 3/4 of the genitalia (vs. 1/3 of the genitalia).

The copulatory opening is posterior to the secondary spermathecae (vs. anterior to the secondary spermathecae). The secondary spermathecae are inverted V-shaped (vs. V-shaped). The primary and secondary spermathecae are far apart from each other (vs. partially overlapping).

Original research

Tang G, Yan W-l, Zhao Y, Peng X-j (2024). Description of two new species of the genus Trachelas L. Koch, 1872 and the male of T. gaoligongensis Jin, Yin & Zhang, 2017 from China (Araneae, Trachelidae). ZooKeys 1215: 127-138, DOI:10.3897/zookeys.1215.130564

Dlium theDlium

Popular Posts

Giant green leech (Raksasa hijau)

Lintah raksasa or giant green leech ( Raksasa hijau ) is a species of animal in Salifidae, large green leeches, carnivores, not hematophagic, can grow to lengths of more than 50 cm, the front is perfectly tubular, but it is getting bigger, wider and flat backward. R. hijau has a front end that ends with a white mouth and has a width equal to the diameter of the front end of the body. The rear end ends with the anus and has a width equal to the diameter of the rear end of the body. The upper surface is whole dark green or leafy green, looks shiny and has no other additional color features. The bottom surface is lighter or brownish green. The skin is wrinkled like tight, elastic joints that make it possible to lengthen the body. Giant green leech moves forward by extending the tip of the front of the body to keep the new location farther away and this movement is then followed by the middle body and gradually the rear where the body moves completely. R. hijau does not suck blo...

Telotaun (Manihot carthagenensis)

Telotaun ( Manihot carthagenensis ) is a plant species in Euphorbiaceae, trees or shrubs 2-10 m tall, erect and fibrous, white latex, leaves varying with the subspecies noted are Manihot carthagenensis ssp. carthagenensis , Manihot carthagenensis ssp. glaziovii and Manihot carthagenensis ssp. hahnii . M. carthagenensis has an erect stem, a tubular shape, a young stem which is bright green and covered in white wax, an old stem that has a thin layer of brown skin. Long leaf stems and white waxy, arranged alternately, growing in all directions, green on the bottom and redish on the top. Leaves have 3-7 fingers each up to 25 cm long and up to 15 cm wide, ellipses become obovoid, sometimes pandurate and apex acute. Each leaf finger has a bone in the middle that moves linearly with some pinnate bones. The upper surface is green and slightly shiny, the lower surface is whitish green. The base of the leaf is centered at the end of the stalk, the pointed end which ends at the head of the sp...

Purwaceng (Pimpinella pruatjan)

Purwaceng or purwoceng or antanan gunung or Viagra of Java ( Pimpinella pruatjan or Pimpinella priatjan ) are small termas growing horizontally in Apiaceae, growing in villages on Dieng Plateau, Central Java Province, Indonesia, at 1,500 to 2,000 meters above sea level, the roots have medicinal properties for aphrodisiacs and are usually processed in powder form for a mixture of coffee or milk. P. pruatjan grows flat on the ground but does not propagate, small leaves are reddish green for 1-3 cm in diameter. This plant is only found in Java and grows in high mountain areas. A low population where industrial demand is very high results in increasingly scarce. Another place that is likely to become a purwaceng habitat is the Iyang Mountains and the Tengger Mountains in East Java Province. Efforts to multiply and cultivate have a big problem where these plants have difficulty producing seeds. In vitro propagation research through tissue cultivation has been carried out to overcome ...