Smeringopina ogooue new species

Figs. 8–9, 479–483, 513–514, 527, 553–568

Type. ♂ holotype from Gabon, Ogooué-Lolo, near Moudouma (1°23.5’S, 12°09.6’E), 475 m a.s.l., forest along brook, 24.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), in ZFMK (Ar 10264).

Other material examined. GABON: Ogooué-Lolo: near Moudouma: same data as holotype, 10♂ 5♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10265); same data, 2 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 159). Forest near Lastoursville (0°48.0’S, 12°44.4’E), 300 m a.s.l., 21.viii.2011 (B.A. Huber), 2♂ 4♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10266); same data, 1 juv. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 220). Grotte de Pahon Pira near Lastoursville (0°48.8’S, 12°45.1’E), 360 m a.s.l., in cave and near entrance, 22.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 6♂ 17♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10267); same data, 1 juv. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 162). Forest at brook near Lastoursville, near Grotte de Pahon Pira (0°48.8’S, 12°45.2’E), 290 m a.s.l., 22.–23.viii.2011 (B.A. Huber), 1♂ 3♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10268). Haut Ogooué: degraded forest at hill near Mouanda (1°34.3’S, 13°11.0’E), 460 m a.s.l., 20.viii.2011 (B.A. Huber), 1♂ in ZFMK (Ar 10269); same data, 1 juv. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 163). Forest at Lékoni River (1°10.7’S, 13°32.3’E), 305 m a.s.l., 18.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 3♂ 3♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10270); same data, 4 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 215). Forest near Bongoville (1°36.7’S, 13°57.4’E), 600–650 m a.s.l., 20.viii.2011 (B.A. Huber), 2♂ 2♀ 1 juv. in ZFMK (Ar 10271); same data, 1♀ 2 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 205). Ogooué-Ivindo: near Mohoba Mozeye (0°16.8’N, 13°20.9’E), 510 m a.s.l., forest along road, 17.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 4♂ 2♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10272); same data, 2 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 168). Monts de Belinga, forest near Mayebout (1°06.7’N, 13°06.6’E), 500 m a.s.l., 13.–14.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 2♂ in ZFMK (Ar 10273); Monts de Belinga, Mayebout (1°06.9’N, 13°06.4’E), 500 m a.s.l., in building, 13.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 1♂ in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 226). Monts de Belinga, NE Makokou (0°47.0’N, 13°08.3’E), 530 m a.s.l., degraded forest along road, 15.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 2♂ 4♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10274); same data, 2♀ 2 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 224). N Tébé (0°02.3’S, 13°40.9’E), 550 m a.s.l., forest along brook, 17.viii.2011 (B.A. & S.R. Huber), 1♂ 2♀ in ZFMK (Ar 10275); same data, 2 juvs. in pure ethanol, in ZFMK (Gab 165).

Etymology. The name is derived from the Ogooué River whose watershed drains nearly the entire country of Gabon; noun in apposition.

Diagnosis. Easily distinguished from similar congeners (large species with long abdomen, cone-shaped modified hairs on male chelicerae, simple unbranched procursus) by distinctive prolatero-ventral process on male palpal femur (Fig. 481); also by shape of procursus (distally not curved toward ventrally; Fig. 554) and male cheliceral armature (cone-shaped hairs small, short distal apophyses with only 1–4 modified hairs each, Fig. 555); female not easily distinguished from similar species (e.g., S. bioko, S. etome).

Male (holotype). Total body length 7.1, carapace width 1.8. Leg 1: 79.7 (18.4 + 0.8 + 18.1 + 39.1 + 3.3), tibia 2: 12.4, tibia 3: 8.4, tibia 4: 10.8; tibia 1 L/d: 105. Distance PME-PME 205 µm, diameter PME 170 µm, distance PME-ALE 70 µm, distance AME-AME 45 µm, diameter AME 160 µm. Carapace ochre-yellow with brown mark posteriorly and brown lateral margins; ocular area posteriorly light brown, clypeus with pair of brown marks at rim, sternum dark brown; legs ochre-yellow, slightly darker rings subdistally on femora and tibiae (indistinct) and in patella area, tips of femora and tibiae whitish; abdomen ochre-gray with distinct black pattern dorsally, laterally, and ventrally. Habitus as in Figs. 479–480, ocular area slightly elevated, secondary eyes with distinct ‘pseudolenses’; clypeus unmodified but with longer than usual hairs; deep thoracic pit and pair of shallow furrows diverging behind pit. Chelicerae as in Fig. 555, with lateral proximal apophyses and short distal apophyses; distal apophyses and frontal cheliceral face provided with several small modified (cone-shaped) hairs (Fig. 562). Palps as in Figs. 481–483; coxa unmodified; trochanter with wide retrolatero-ventral apophysis; femur proximally with ventral sclerotized ridge but without pocket, with long retrolateral apophysis and distinctive prolateral process; prolateral femur-patella joint strongly shifted toward ventrally; tarsus with several strong hairs dorsally; procursus very simple, apparently without hinge between proximal and distal part (Figs. 553–554, 559–560); bulb with widened but weakly sclerotized proximal part of embolus (Figs. 556, 561). Legs without spines and curved hairs, with few vertical hairs, retrolateral trichobothrium on tibia 1 at 1%; prolateral trichobothrium present on all tibiae; pseudosegments barely visible. ALS with eight spigots each (Figs. 564, 566); gonopore with two epiandrous spigots (Fig. 563).

Variation. Tip of procursus slightly longer in males from near Bongoville. Distal cheliceral apophyses with variable number of cone-shaped hairs (1–4 each). Tibia 1 in 28 other males: 15.1–19.9 (mean 17.2).

Female. In general similar to male; clypeus variably dark (often darker than in males). Tibia 1 in 39 females: 12.5–15.6 (mean 14.0). Epigynum consisting of trapezoidal anterior plate slightly indented between anterior and posterior half and weakly sclerotized medially near posterior rim, and large posterior plate (Figs. 513–514, 557); internal genitalia as in Figs. 527, 558, 565, 568. Spinnerets as in male (Fig. 567).

Natural history. S. ogooue was found in well preserved forests (e.g. near Mohoba Mozeye; near Moudouma) and in disturbed forest patches (e.g. NE of Makokou; near Mouanda). Juveniles often built their webs quite freely among the vegetation but the large webs of adults were mainly built among large tree buttresses; as a result, adult specimens were difficult to find in forests where the large trees were missing (e.g. near Tébé; at Lekoni River). At Mayebout, S. ogooue was found to share the forest with the superficially similar S. mayebout . While S. mayebout was rather found in hollow trees and cavities in the ground, S. ogooue was collected among tree buttresses. Strategies to avoid predation seemed to vary among localities: in the forests near Bongoville and Moudouma, the spiders fled extremely rapidly at the slightest disturbance, making capture very difficult; at the entrance to the Pahon Pira cave near Lastoursville they just vibrated and were easy to catch.

Distribution. Known from several localities in eastern Gabon (Fig. 468).