Typhochlaena chapadensis, Bertani & Antunes & Gallão, 2025

Bertani, Rogério, Antunes, Vinicius S. & Gallão, Jonas E., 2025, A new species of tiny arboreal tarantula of the genus Typhochlaena C. L. Koch, 1850 (Araneae, Theraphosidae) from the State of Bahia, Brazil, Zootaxa 5660 (1), pp. 102-110 : 103-106

Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov.

( Figs 1–19 )

Diagnosis. The male of Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. resembles those of T. curumim by having a long embolus, between two and three times the tegulum length ( Figs 10, 12–15 ) and the abdomen pattern black with 4 lateral reddish spots ( Figs 1 , 2, 6 ). It can be distinguished from those of T. curumim by the slender embolus, narrowing abruptly from the tegulum ( Figs 12–14 ) and the more conspicuous whitish rings on the distal patellae, tibiae and metatarsi ( Fig. 1 ), as well as the dark cephalic area and abdomen dorsum with numerous long and whitish setae ( Figs 1–4, 6 ). The female is unknown.

Etymology. The specific epithet refers to the “Chapada Diamantina ” region, where the holotype was found.

Type material. Holotype male from Brazil, State of Bahia, Lençóis [12º33’S, 41º23’W, 390 m a. s. l.], V. S. Antunes & J. E. Gallão col., October 2024, LES 0030157 .

Other material examined. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov., 1 immature, same data as holotype ( LES 0030158 ) . Typhochlaena curumin . BRAZIL, state of Rio Grande do Norte, locality data redacted: 1 male, S. N. Migliore col., 19 April 2014, 19h58, over a bush leaf in a trail, ref. S90 ( MNRJ 6915 ) ; 1 male, S. N. Migliore col., 20 April 2014, 20h15, walking over a branch in a tree, ca 2 m high, ref. S102 ( MZUSP 75781 ); locality data redacted: 2 males, W. Pessoa col., 21–22 September 2014, walking over trees, less than 2 m high, ( MZUSP 75782 ) .

Description. Male. Holotype. Total length (without chelicerae): 13.01. Carapace: 6.37 long, 6.36 wide, as long as wide; cephalic region slightly raised, thoracic striae deep ( Fig. 4 ). Chelicera: 2.17 long. Abdomen: 6.68 long, 4.45 wide. Spinnerets: PMS, 1.02 long, 0.41 wide, 0.10 apart; PLS, 1.14 basal, 0.53 middle, 0.42 distal; midwidths 0.77, 0.58, 0.39, respectively ( Figs 7–8 ). Fovea: straight, shallow, 1.13 wide.

Eyes: eye tubercle 0.62 high, 1.06 long, 1.71 wide. Clypeus absent. Anterior row of eyes procurved. Posterior row of eyes slightly recurved ( Fig. 3 ). Eye sizes and interdistances: AME 0.44, ALE 0.34, PME 0.19, PLE 0.21, AME–AME 0.29, AME–ALE 0.21, AME–PME 0.10, ALE–ALE 1.25, ALE–PME 0.28, PME–PME 1.11, PME– PLE 0.06, PLE–PLE 1.34, ALE–PLE 0.20, AME–PLE 0.25.

Maxilla: 1.74 times longer than wide. Cuspules: 66 spread over ventral inner heel. Labium: 0.72 long, 1.16 wide, with 75 cuspules spaced by one diameter of each other on the anterior half. Labio-sternal groove shallow and flattened, with two separate, large sigilla ( Fig. 5 ). Chelicerae: rastellum absent, basal segment with 7 teeth on promargin. Sternum: 2.51 long, 2.82 wide. Sigilla: three pairs, rounded, less than one diameter from margin ( Fig. 5 ).

Legs (femur, patella, tibia, metatarsus, tarsus, total): I: 7.48, 3.72, 6.06, 5.36, 2.85, 25.47, II: 7.38, 3.49, 5.81, 4.92, 2.55, 24.15. III: 6.51, 2.85, 4.56, 4.25, 2.15, 20.32. IV: 7.80, 3.07, 6.03, 5.92, 2.42, 25.24. Palp: 4.11, 2.41, 2.97, ―, 1.09, 10.58. Midwidths: femora I–IV= 1.36, 1.39, 1.31, 1.25, palp= 1.04; patellae I–IV= 1.24, 1.24, 1.18 1.18, palp= 1.09; tibiae I–IV= 0.97, 1.06, 0.96, 0.91, palp= 1.11; metatarsi I–IV= 0.86, 0.86, 0.78, 0.79; tarsi I–IV= 0.90, 0.85, 0.76, 0.78, palp= 1.03. Formula: I = IV II III. Length leg IV to leg I: 0.99. Clavate trichobothria: two rows on distal 1/2 of tarsi I–IV. Scopula: Tarsi I–IV fully scopulate, IV divided by wide band of setae. Metatarsi I–II on distal 2/3; III on distal 1/2; IV on distal 1/5. IV divided by setae. Scopula setae longest on lateral areas of tarsi and metatarsi, giving spatulate aspect to articles. Legs I–IV with laterally directed long setae. Spines absent on all legs and palps.

Urticating setae: type II (0.55 to 0.63 long) on the abdomen dorsum ( Fig. 9 ).

Palp ( Figs 10, 12–15 ): globous bulb with small subtegulum and slightly developed prominence on tegulum. Embolus not flattened, lacking keels, 1.50 long in retrolateral view ( Fig. 13 ), about 2.1 times length of tegulum. Proximal part not curved in frontal view ( Fig. 15 ); thin distal width, narrowing abruptly from tegulum; basal, middle and distal width 0.18, 0.06, 0.02, respectively. Tegulum: 0.71 long, 0.84 high in retrolateral view ( Fig. 13 ). Cymbium with two subequal lobes, lacking process on retrolateral lobe. Tibial apophysis: absent ( Fig. 11 ). Metatarsus I straight.

Color pattern ( Figs 1–8 ): carapace and chelicerae dark brown. Thoracic area of carapace with pinkish iridescent setae, cephalic area with dark setae. A row of long setae directed forward from the anterior carapace border, in front of the eye tubercle. Chelicerae with some long setae directed forward. Legs and palps brown, with long brown setae. Coxae and maxillae brown. Labium and sternum dark. Longitudinal stripes on femora, patellae, tibiae and metatarsi inconspicuous. Whitish rings on distal patellae, tibiae, and metatarsi. Abdomen black dorsally with four reddish spots on each lateral. Several scattered white and very long guard hairs over abdomen dorsally. Ventrally black with book-lung and epigastric areas light yellow. Spinnerets black.

Distribution. Brazil, only known from the State of Bahia, in the Chapada Diamantina region ( Figs 18–19 ).

Color pattern ontogeny. No drastic ontogenetic changes in color pattern were noted.The immature has light brown femora and patellae with dark tibiae, metatarsi and tarsi. The carapace is blackish with iridescent metallic greenish setae. Sternum and labium light brown ( Figs 16–17 ).

Natural History. The male of Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. was found wandering inside a house probably looking for females or food and the juvenile was found under loose tree bark in a peri-domiciliar area.

Figures

FIGURE 1. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov., live, subadult male. Photo: Vinicius Antunes.

FIGURES 2–6. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. male holotype. 2, cephalothorax and abdomen, dorsal. 3, eye tubercle. 4, carapace. 5, maxillae, labium, sternum, and coxae. 6, abdomen, dorsal. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 7–9. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. male holotype. 7, abdomen, ventral. 8, spinnerets, ventral. 9, urticating seta of type II. Scale bars = 1 mm (Figs 7, 8), 0.5 mm (Fig. 9).

FIGURES 10–15. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. male holotype. 10, left palp, prolateral. 11, left metatarsus and tibia I, ventral. (12-15) left male palp bulb. 12, prolateral. 13, retrolateral. 14, dorsal. 15, frontal. Scale bar = 1 mm. (Figs 6–10), 0.1 mm (Fig. 11).

FIGURES 16–17. Typhochlaena chapadensis sp. nov. immature (LES 0030158). 16, habitus, dorsal. 17, habitus, ventral. Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURES 18–19. Maps showing records of Typhochlaena species in Brazil. 18, relief. 19, biomes. Forested areas of Fig. 19 are in green shades, on east (Brazilian Atlantic Forest) and on west (Amazon). Brown areas represent the Cerrado; and pinkish areas the Caatinga. Yellow square = T. curumim, inverted purple triangle = T. costae, green dot = T. seladonia, light blue hexagon = T. chapadensis sp. nov.; orange triangle = T. paschoali, red star = T. amma. Records based on Bertani (2012) and Fukushima et al. (2020).