Tekellina zhangziqingi Yao, Liu & Lin, 2025

Wang, Zhong-Jing, Yao, Yan-Bin, Lyu, Xiao-Ting, Liu, Ke-Ke & Lin, Yu-Cheng, 2025, Two new species of Synotaxidae from eastern China (Araneae, Synotaxidae), ZooKeys 1248, pp. 1-16 : 1-16

Tekellina zhangziqingi Yao, Liu & Lin sp. nov.

Figs 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 B Common Chinese name: 张子清特克蛛

Type material.

Holotype: ♂, CHINA: • Jiangxi Prov., Ji’an City, Jinggangshan County Level City, Ciping Town, Jinggangshan Nature Reserve, Huangyangjie Scenic Spot , 26°38'9.6"N, 114°6'E, 1080 m a. s. l., 3.VIII.2014, K. K. Liu et al. leg. ( Syn-02 , ASM-JGSU) ; Paratypes: • 1 ♀, same nature reserve, Zhufeng Scenic Spot , 26°31'58.8"N, 114°8'31.2"E, 708 m a. s. l., 1.VIII.2014, K. K. Liu et al. leg. ( Syn-02 , ASM-JGSU) ; 1 ♀, 17.VI.2025, Z. J. Wang and C. Z. Li leg. ( ASM-JGSU -Ara-4501 ), other data same as holotype .

Diagnosis.

The male of the species resembles that of T. helixicis ( Gao and Li 2014: 90, figs 72 A, 74 A, B) in having the enlarged and thumb-shaped paracymbium and the finger-like terminal claw-like arm of the conductor, but can be easily separated from it by the mesal arm of conductor with an identical median ridge and terminal lamellar process (vs. absent) (Figs 5 A , 7 A, B ). The females can be easily distinguished from T. helixicis ( Gao and Li 2014: 90, figs 71 C, D, 73 A, B) by the course of the loosely-spiral copulatory ducts surrounding the spermathecae (vs. tightly), the course of the copulatory ducts not reaching the apical part of the spermathecae (vs. reaching) and the spermathecae distally convergent (vs. nearly parallel) (Figs 5 B , 6 C ).

Description.

Male (holotype). Habitus as in Fig. 4 A, B . Total length 1.15, carapace 0.46 long, 0.42 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances (Fig. 4 A ): AME 0.06, ALE 0.05, PME 0.06, PLE 0.06, AME - AME 0.04, AME - ALE 0.01, PME - PME 0.03, PME - PLE 0.02, AME - PME 0.03, AME - PLE 0.06, ALE - ALE 0.1, PLE - PLE 0.03, ALE - PLE 0.01. MOA 0.13 long, front width 0.14, back width 0.14. Labium 3 times wider than long. Sternum (Fig. 4 B ) shield-shaped, slightly longer than wide. Legs (Fig. 4 A, B ): with neatly short setae; measurements: I missing; II 1.69 (0.49, 0.19, 0.45, 0.36, 0.2); III 1.29 (0.41, 0.16, 0.28, 0.22, 0.22); IV 1.57 (0.52, 0.14, 0.4, 0.29, 0.22). Abdomen (Fig. 4 A, B ) 2.52 long, 2.62 wide.

Coloration (Fig. 4 A, B ). Carapace yellowish to brown. Chelicerae, endites, labium and sternum transparent to yellowish. Legs yellowish to yellow. Abdomen white to yellowish, with several white spots.

Palp (Figs 5 A , 7 A, B ). Paracymbium thumb-shaped. Conductor Y-shaped. Terminal claw of the conductor finger-like, approaching the hollow paracymbium. Mesal arm of the conductor stubby, narrow lamellar, with a truncated tip and not reaching the terminal claw of the conductor. Embolus filamentous and coiling, with four spirals.

Female (paratype). Habitus as in Fig. 4 C, D , 6 A, B . As in male, except as noted. Total length 1.18, carapace 0.39 long, 0.29 wide. Eye sizes and interdistances (Fig. 4 C , 6 A ): AME 0.05, ALE 0.5, PME 0.06, PLE 0.06, AME - AME 0.05, AME - ALE 0.02, PME - PME 0.03, PME - PLE 0.02, AME - PME 0.05, AME - PLE 0.08, ALE - ALE 0.18, PLE - PLE 0.21, ALE - PLE 0.02. MOA 0.14 long, front width 0.13, back width 0.15. Sternum with sparse setae. Legs (Fig. 4 C, D , 6 A, B ): measurements: I 1.57 (0.46, 0.18, 0.32, 0.29, 0.32); II 1.87 (0.62, 0.2, 0.56, 0.28, 0.21); III 1.43 (0.48, 0.13, 0.31, 0.29, 0.22); IV 1.77 (0.56, 0.16, 0.47, 0.32, 0.26). Abdomen (Fig. 4 C, D , 6 A, B ) 0.79 long, 0.58 wide.

Coloration (Figs 4 C, D , 6 A, B ). Darker than males. Sometimes, the eyes with black annulations.

Epigyne (Fig. 5 B ). Epigynal plate wider than long, weakly sclerotized and translucent. Copulatory openings separated by distance 2 × maximum spermathecal diameter. Copulatory ducts long, loose spirals surrounding spermathecae, not reaching the apical part of spermathecae. Fertilization ducts short, curved forward to mesal, directed medially. Spermathecae convergent, widely separate, constriction nearly 5: 5.

Note.

Fig. 5 A was imaged under a cover slip, thus altering the spatial relationship between the mesal arm of the conductor and the terminal claw of the conductor. However, the SEM images (in natural state) in Fig. 7 clearly demonstrate that the mesal arm of the conductor does not reach the terminal claw of the conductor. And in our newly collected paratype (Fig. 6 ), the female spermatheca also exhibits a significantly greater inclination angle than in T. huihangi , confirming this as a conspecific pairing rather than a variant.

Habitat.

In the low shrubs (Fig. 8 A ).

Distribution.

Known only from Jiangxi Province, China.

Etymology.

The species is named in honor of Zi-Qing Zhang, one of the famous figures of the extremely hard and bitter struggle in Jinggangshan; noun (name) in genitive case.

Figures

Figure 4. Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., male holotype and female paratype. A. male habitus, dorsal view; B. Same, ventral view; C. Female habitus, dorsal view; D. Same, ventral view. Scale bars: 0.2 mm.

Figure 5. Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., male holotype and female paratype. A. Right palp, ventral view; B. Vulva, dorsal view. Abbreviations: CC – terminal claw-like arm of conductor, CD – copulatory duct, CM – mesal arm of conductor, CO – copulatory opening, Em – embolus, FD – fertilization duct, Spe – spermatheca, Te – tegulum. Scale bars: 0.10 mm (A); 0.05 mm (B).

Figure 6. Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., female paratype. A. Habitus, dorsal view; B. Same, ventral view; C. Detail of vulva, ventral view. Scale bars: 0.2 mm (A, B), 0.05 mm (C).

Figure 7. Scanning electron micrographs of Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., male palp, holotype. A. Left palp, ventral view; B. Same, detail of bulb. Abbreviations: CC – terminal claw-like arm of conductor, Con – conductor, CM – mesal arm of conductor, Em – embolus, Pa – paracymbium.

Figure 8. A. Habitat of Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., red arrow shows the sampling point; B. Living specimen of Tekellina zhangziqingi sp. nov., female.