Neobisium (Neobisium) major Callaini, 1982

Gardini, Giulio & Gardini, Pietro, 2025, The epigean pseudoscorpions of the genus Neobisium from Corsica and Sardinia with description of a new species (Pseudoscorpiones: Neobisiidae), Zootaxa 5627 (1), pp. 93-127 : 110-112

Neobisium (Neobisium) major Callaini, 1982 (n. stat.)

( Figs 37–43 , 78 )

Neobisium (N.) mahnerti major Callaini, 1982: 449 , figs 1a–e, 2a–b.

Type locality: France, Corsica, Corte, Lac de Melo (42°12’43”N 9°01’24”E) .

Distribution. France ( Corsica).

Diagnosis (♂ ♀). An epigean medium-sized Neobisium from Corsica that differs from other Mediterranean species of the genus in the following combination of characters: carapace with 2 preocular setae on each side, 23–24 setae on ocular and median rows and 13–17 setae on posterior margin; epistome acute triangular, with apical denticles; both eyes with convex lens and tapetum, anterior eyes at a distance of approximately half their diameter from the edge of the carapace; chaetotaxy of tergites I–IV: 12–15:14–16:17:17–20; cheliceral palm with (6) 7 setae, rallum with 7 or 8 blades; pedipalpal femur smooth, 0.675–0.75 mm length (3.55–3.57 ×); patella smooth, short and slightly elongate, 1.15–1.26 mm length (2.16–2.23 ×), ratio X/Y = 1.07–1.16; chelal hand with very slightly raised sub-hemispheric granules giving the surface an “orange peel” appearance; fixed chelal finger homodentate, with contiguous teeth; fixed and movable chelal fingers with 38–52 and 38–42 teeth, respectively; movable chelal finger 0.615 –0.650 mm length, with clearly evident dentition along its entire length; ratio between movable finger and hand of chela with pedicel lengths 1.0; ratio between pedipalpal femur and movable chelal finger lengths 1.09–1.15; ratio between pedipalpal femur and carapace lengths 1.05–1.07; trichobothrium it at the same level as et, trichobothrium ist just over half of the fixed chelal finger; trichobothrium st closer to t than to sb, trichobothrium sb closer to b than to st.

Type material examined. FRANCE — Corsica: municipality of Corte : 1♂ holotype, “ Neobisium mahnerti Heurtault major n. ssp. / ♂ holotypus ” “ Corsica – Lago di Mela / m 1700– 1800 7.VIII. [19]78 / leg. Sette ” ( MSNV) .

Non-type material examined. FRANCE — Corsica: municipality of Bastelica: 1♀, Val d’Ese , about 1600 m a.s.l., 8.IX.1998, M. Daccordi leg.

Description of adults (♂ ♀). Carapace, chelicerae, pedipalps and palpal coxae yellow-brown, chelal fingers of the same colour of the hand; pedipalps smooth and shiny, except for the chelal hand, which has, chiefly in female, very slightly raised sub-hemispheric granules that give the surface an “orange peel” appearance; pleural membrane granular. Carapace 1.34 (♂) or 1.30 (♀) times as long as broad, with four bulging eyes with tapetum ( Fig. 37 ); anterior eyes with convex lens [diameter 0.075 (♂) or 0.06 (♀) mm], the posterior ones weakly reduced; distance from anterior eyes to anterior margin of carapace 0.04 (♂) or 0.03 (♀) mm; distance from anterior to posterior eyes 0.026 (♂) or 0.024 (♀) mm; anterior margin of carapace with acute triangular epistome [0.033 (♂) or 0.026 (♀) mm length], with apical denticles ( Fig. 37 ); chaetotaxy mm 4m?:23:13 (♂) or mm 4mm:24:17 (♀). Chaetotaxy of tergites I–X: 12:16:17:17:17:17:15:16:18:16 (♂), 15:14:17:20:20:20:23:21:20:16 (♀). Chaetotaxy of sternites II–X: 8:(3)26(3):(3)14(3):22:20:20:20:18:16 (♂), 8:(4)17(4):(4)14(4):24:25:24:28:22:23 (♀); male with lateral genital sacs tubular, median genital sac not seen, genital atrium with 6+6 or 7 setae. Chelicera ( Fig. 39 ) 1.83 (♂) or 1.76 (♀) times as long as broad, palm with 7 setae (6 setae in the right chelicera of the male); fixed finger with 13–14 teeth; movable finger with 12–13 teeth, the largest just at level of gs; gs ratio 0.62 (♂) or 0.55 (♀), spinneret subcircular in both sexes, rallum with 7 (♂) or 8 (♀) blades, the distal one laterally pinnate and isolated on a prominence, the second one serrate, the successive ones smooth, the proximal isolated and very short; serrulae interior and exterior with 21–23 and 20–25 blades, respectively. Manducatory process with 4 (♂) or 3 (♀) setae. Coxal setae: pedipalp 12 and 14, I 11, II 9 and 10, III 7 and 9, IV 15 and 16 (♂), pedipalp 10, I 8 and 9, II 8, III 8 and 9, IV 13 and 15 (♀); anterolateral process of coxa I prominent and pointed, anteromedial process prominent and apically rounded, with evident spiniform processes ( Fig. 38 ). Pedipalp ( Figs 40–42 ): trochanter 2.05 (♂ ♀) times as long as broad, with a prominent tubercle on antiaxial face; femur 3.57 (♂) or 3.55 (♀) times as long as broad, with evident pedicel; patella 2.23 (♂) or 2.16 (♀) times as long as broad, ratio X/Y = 1.07 (♂) or 1.16 (♀); chela with pedicel 3.31 (♂) or 3.19 (♀) times as long as broad; hand of chela with pedicel 1.71 (♂) or 1.69 (♀) times as long as broad, with oval profile and its greatest width in the proximal third; fixed chelal finger stubby and slightly curved in dorsal view ( Fig. 41 ); fixed chelal finger homodentate ( Fig. 42 ), with 52 (♂) or 38 (♀) contiguous teeth, mostly apically rounded; nodus ramosus subterminal; movable chelal finger with 42 (♂) or 38 (♀) uniform teeth, lower and flatter than those of the fixed finger ( Fig. 42 ); all teeth with dental canals; trichobothria as in figs 41–42, relative position of trichobothria along chelal axis: it 0.24/ et 0.25/ est 0.29 / ist 0.41/ isb 0.75/ ib 0.79/ esb 0.87/ eb 0.88/ t 0.34/ st 0.44/ sb 0.66/ b 0.83 (♂), it 0.25/ et 0.26/ est 0.32 / ist 0.445/ isb 0.745/ ib 0.78/ esb 0.87/ eb 0.89/ t 0.35/ st 0.45/ sb 0.67/ b 0.83 (♀); trichobothrium it at level of et; trichobothrium ist just proximal st, just over half of the fixed chelal finger and closer to it than to ib; ratio between movable finger and hand of chela with pedicel lengths 1.0 (♂ ♀); ratio between pedipalpal femur and movable finger lengths 1.15 (♂) or 1.09 (♀); ratio between pedipalpal femur and carapace lengths 1.07 (♂) or 1.05 (♀). Leg IV ( Fig. 43 ): trochanter 1.86 (♂) or 2.30 (♀) times as long as deep, femur + patella 3.22 (♂) or 3.39 (♀) times as long as deep, tibia 5.18 (♂) or 5.42 (♀) times [TS = 0.46 (♂) or 0.40 (♀)], basitarsus 3.25 (♂) or 3.06 (♀) times [TS = 0.21(♂) or 0.16 (♀)], telotarsus 4.25 (♂) or 4.28 (♀) times as long as deep [TS = 0.43 (♂) or 0.39 (♀)], ratio between basitarsus and telotarsus lengths 0.76 (♂ ♀), subterminal seta furcate and indented ( Fig. 43 ), claws with dorsal tooth.

Measurements. Body length 2.3 (♂) or 2.9 (♀). Carapace 0.670 × 0.52 anteriorly (♂) or 0.64 × 0.49 anteriorly (♀). Chelicera 0.43 × 0.235 (♂) or 0.415 × 0.235 (♀); movable finger length 0.29 (♂) or 0.28 (♀). Pedipalp: trochanter 0.41 × 0.20 (♂) or 0.39 × 0.19 (♀); femur 0.75 × 0.21 (♂) or 0.675 × 0.19 (♀); patella 0.58 × 0.26 (♂) or 0.53 × 0.245 (♀); chela with pedicel 1.26 × 0.38 (♂) or 1.15 × 0.36 (♀); hand with pedicel length 0.65 (♂) or 0.61 (♀); movable finger length 0.65 (♂) or 0.615 (♀). Leg IV: trochanter 0.26 × 0.14 (♂) or 0.30 × 0.13 (♀); femur + patella 0.71 × 0.22 (♂) or 0.645 × 0.19 (♀); tibia 0.57 × 0.11 (♂) or 0.515 × 0.095 (♀); basitarsus 0.26 × 0.08 (♂) or 0.23 × 0.075 (♀); telotarsus 0.34 × 0.08 (♂) or 0.30 × 0.07 (♀).

Remarks. Neobisium mahnerti was described by Heurtault (1980) on a male collected in the Escreins Valley (Hautes-Alpes, France) and is, to date, known only from the holotype (WPC 2024). The relationships of this species remain uncertain but are likely to be found within the group of Neobisium species with heterodont dentition of the fixed chelal finger and coxae I with digitiform median process ( Heurtault 1980).

Callaini (1982) described Neobisium (Neobisium) mahnerti major based on a single male specimen collected near the Lac de Melo (Corte, northern Corsica), emphasising that it shares with the nominotypical subspecies the increased cephalothoracic chaetotaxy and the same arrangement of trichobothria, but, at the same time, it differs from it in having larger dimensions and some different morphomeric ratios of the pedipalps: femur 0.753 mm length (3.58 ×) in N. mahnerti major vs. 0.525 mm length (3.83 ×) in Neobisium mahnerti mahnerti , patella 0.586 mm (2.23 ×) vs. 0.425 mm (2.43 ×), chela 1.260 mm vs. 0.825 mm, chelal hand 0.648 mm (1.68 ×) vs. 0.475 mm (1.90 ×), chelal finger 0.656 mm vs. 0.475 mm. No mention is made of the different dentition of the fixed chelal finger ( Callaini 1982): heterodentate in N. m. mahnerti , homodentate in N. m. major .

The different fixed chelal finger dentition between Neobisium mahnerti mahnerti and N. mahnerti major allows the latter to be elevated to species status, so Neobisium (Neobisium) major Callaini, 1982 (n. stat.) is consequently proposed.

Figures

FIGURE 78. Map depicting known distribution of Neobisum (Neobisium) species from Corsica.

FIGURES 37–43. Neobisium (N.) major Callaini, 1982, female (Corsica, Bastelica, Val d’Ese). 37, carapace; 38, anterior processes of right coxa I; 39, right chelicera, dorsal view; 40, trochanter, femur and patella of right pedipalp, dorsal view; 41, right pedipalpal chela, dorsal view; 42, same, antiaxial view, with magnified details of teeth at level of trichobothria et and st-t; 43, right leg IV, antiaxial view, with magnified detail of subterminal seta of telotarsus.