Episinus implicatus, Liang & Liu & Yin & Xu, 2025

Liang, Yun, Liu, Jinnan, Yin, Haiqiang & Xu, Xiang, 2025, On new spider species of the genus Episinus (Araneae, Theridiidae) from China and proposal of five species groups, Biodiversity Data Journal 13, pp. e 144222-e 144222 : e144222-

Episinus implicatus sp. nov.

Materials

Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: recordedBy: Jinxin Liu, Zongguang Huang, Yun Liang, Jinnan Liu and Yecheng Wu; individualCount: 1; sex: female; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: E935EA98-5895-5F02-9626-ACC410D4A575; Taxon: scientificName: Episinus implicatus ; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Yunnan; county: Mengla; verbatimLocality: Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden; verbatimElevation: 577 m; verbatimCoordinates: 21°55'0.67''N, 101°16'14.32''E; Event: year: 2023; month: 9; day: 30; Record Level: institutionID: HNU 869

Description

Female (Holotype): Total length 5.01, carapace 1.79 long, 1.47 wide, abdomen 3.22 long, 2.67 wide. Eye sizes and inter-distances: AME 0.14, ALE 0.14, PME 0.12, PLE 0.12; AME-AME 0.09, AME-ALE 0.03, PME-PME 0.08, PME-PLE 0.08. Clypeus height 0.28. STL 1.05, STW 0.88. Legs measurements: I 8.78 (2.37, 0.81, 1.89, 2.80, 0.91); II 5.65 (1.66, 0.74, 1.08, 1.55 0.62); III 4.42 (1.29, 0.58, 0.79, 1.15, 0.61); IV 9.12 (2.64, 0.94, 1.84, 2.80, 0.91). Leg formula IV-I-II-III.

Colouration (Fig. 3 A – C): Carapace pear-shaped, yellow-brown. Fovea and radial furrow brown, deep (Fig. 3 A). Eyes area slightly elevated. Chelicerae light brown, without teeth. Pedipalp brown. Endite longer than wide. Labium extending, nearly rectangular. Sternum longer than wide, lateral margins sinuous and brown (Fig. 3 B). Legs brown, except for pale trochanters III-IV, femur III and basal half of femur IV. Abdomen brown, dorsum with two white arcuate stripes anteriorly (Fig. 3 A), venter brown, except the pale posterolateral region and a slightly arched white line before spinnerets Fig. 3 B); pentagonal-shaped, with widest part at three quarters of abdominal length (Fig. 3 A) and with short hump on each side as seen in lateral view (Fig. 3 C).

Epigyne (Fig. 3 D and Fig. 4 A): with deep and relatively large atria (A) separated by a sclerotised median septum. Vulva (Fig. 3 E – F and 4 B): copulatory ducts (CD) extremely long, coiling around spermathecae for approximately six loops and with two additional loops as seen in posterior view (Fig. 3 F). Spermathecae (S) longitudinally elongated, with contracted middle portions. Fertilisation ducts (FD) originating from inside side of basal spermathecae.

Male. Unknown.

Diagnosis

This new species can be easily distinguished from those of all known Episinus species by extremely long copulatory ducts circling around spermathecae for approximately six loops (Fig. 3 E-F and Fig. 4 B).

Etymology

The specific epithet is derived from the Latin word “ implicatus ”, meaning “ coiled ” and referring to the shape of copulatory ducts (coiling around spermathecae for approximately six loops) and is an adjective, masculine.

Distribution

Known only from the type locality, China (Yunnan) (Fig. 9 ).

Figures

Figure 3. Episinus implicatus sp. nov., holotype, female (HNU 869). A – C habitus; A dorsal view; B ventral view; C lateral view; D epigyne, ventral view; E – F vulva; E dorsal view; F dorso-posterior view. Abbreviations: At — atrium, CD — copulatory duct, FD — fertilisation duct, MS — medium septum, S — spermathecae. Scale bars: 1 mm (A – C); 0.1 mm (D – F).

Figure 4. Episinus implicatus sp. nov., holotype, female (HNU 869). A epigyne, ventral view; B vulva, dorsal view. Abbreviations: At — atrium, CD — copulatory duct, FD — fertilisation duct, MS — medium septum, S — spermathecae. Scale bars: 0.1 mm (A, B).

Figure 9. Collection localities for three new species of Episinus Walckenaer, 1809 in China. 1. Episinus anfu sp. nov.; 2. Episinus implicatus sp. nov.; 3. Episinus pseudonubilus sp. nov.