Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839

Caleb, J. T. D. & Joseph, M. M., 2025, ON THE SYNONYMY OF MYRMARACHNE CALCUTTAENSIS BISWAS, 1984 (ARANEAE: SALTICIDAE), Far Eastern Entomologist 521, pp. 21-24 : 22-23

Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839

Figs 1–7

Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839: 11 , pl. 1, fig. 4 (D ♂); Benjamin, 2015: 2625 , figs 17A-D, 18A-D, 19A-D (♂); Caleb, 2016: 410, figs 20-30 (♂ ♀).

Myrmarachne calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984: 126 , figs 17-19 (D ♀); holotype ♀ in NZC-ZSI, examined; syn. n.

TYPE MATERIAL EXAMINED. Myrmarachne calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984 : Holotype ♀ (NZC-ZSI-5119/18) from India: West Bengal, Kolkata (=Calcutta), Alipore, Zoological Garden , 04.I 1982, coll. Bijan Biswas.

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL EXAMINED. India: Kerala, Alappuzha, Changaram near Ezhupunna , 9.7966 N, 76.2958 E, h=04 m, 20.VIII 2024, 1 ♀ ( BMCAM2024014 ), coll. Anitha Abraham, from ground, by hand .

COMMENTS. Biswas (1984) described Myrmarachne calcuttaensis from Alipore, Kolkata, West Bengal, India, based on a holotype female. The description was accompanied by schematic illustrations of the epigyne and internal genitalia ( Biswas, 1984: figs 18 & 19). Upon re-examination of the holotype ( Figs 1–3 ), we discovered that the dissected epigyne was missing. However, two additional female specimens ( Fig. 4 ), collected from the same location and labelled as " paratypes " ( Fig. 7 ), were found alongside the holotype. Notably, these specimens were not designated as paratypes in the original description. A detailed examination of these specimens revealed that their general morphology and genitalic structure are identical to those of M. melanocephala MacLeay, 1839 : epigyne with a pair of oval copulatory openings, twisted copulatory ducts, and lateral pockets positioned above the epigastric furrow (cf. Figs 1–6 and figs 17–19 in Biswas (1984) with figs 3B–D & 5 in Edwards & Benjamin (2009) and figs 26–30 in Caleb (2016)), clearly indicate that M. calcuttaensis is a junior synonym of M. melanocephala . Furthermore, both M. melanocephala and M. calcuttaensis were originally described from Bengal, a region corresponding to present-day West Bengal, India, and Bangladesh, further substantiating their conspecificity.

REMARK. For a complete list of taxonomic references see World Spider Catalog (2025).

DISTRIBUTION. Pakistan to Indonesia ( World Spider Catalog, 2025).

Figures

Figs 1–7. Myrmarachne calcuttaensis Biswas, 1984, syn. n. (=Myrmarachne melanocephala MacLeay, 1839). 1 – holotype female habitus, dorsal view; 2 – the same, ventral view; 3 – the same, lateral view; 4 – additional females from type locality, dorsal view; 5 – epigyne of larger female, ventral view; 6 – epigyne of smaller female, ventral view; 7 – labels. Scale bars: (1–4) 1 mm, (5–6) 0.2 mm.