Зоологический журнал, 2021, T. 100, № 2, стр. 159-169

Family Neobisiidae J.C. Chamberlin 1930

Genus Roncus L. Koch 1873

Roncus ladestani Dimitrijević et B. Ćurčić sp. n. (Figs 1a–1h; Table 1)

Fig. 1.

Roncus ladestani sp. n., holotype male: a – pedipalpal chela, b – pedipalp, c – leg IV, d – chelicera, e – epistome, f – carapace, g – flagellum, h – abdominal sternites III and IV. Scale bar (mm): a–c, f – 0.25; d, e, g, h – 0.50.

Material. The holotype (♂), labelled as follows: “Croatia, Dalmatia, island of Lastovo, Jama višje Zađa (= Jama za Zle Poje) Pit, latitude 42°45′22.5″ N, longitude 16°52′32.5″ E, 12.VI.1997 (T. Rađa)” (white label, printed)/Holotypus Roncus ladestani sp. n. Dimitrijević et B. Ćurčić det. 2015 (red label, printed) (NHMS).

Diagnosis. Roncus ladestani sp. n. is phenetically and geographically close to the following species inhabiting Dalmatia (Croatia): R. trojanicus Ćurčić 1988, from the Baretina Špilja (= Grota) Cave, village of Okrug Gornji, near Trogir, island of Čiovo, Dalmatia; R. diocletiani Ćurčić, Dimitrijević et Rađa 2008, Omit “from Marasovića,” southern slope of the Marjan hill, Split, Dalmatia; and R. almissae B. Ćurčić, Rađa, S. Ćurčić et N. Ćurčić 2010, from the village of Podašpilje, northern slope of Mt. Omiška Dinara, near Omiš, Dalmatia (Fig. 2) (sharing the presence of eyes and of granulations on the pedipalpal articles). It differs from its close congeners in a number of characters: length of the carapace (0.805 mm in the male vs. 1.10 mm in the female of R. trojanicus vs. R 0.88–0.97 mm in both sexes of R. almissae), the ratio of carapace length to breadth (1.17 in the male vs. 1.35 in the female of R. diocletiani vs. R 1.20–1.22 in both sexes of R. almissae), cheliceral length (0.53 mm in the male vs. 0.59 mm in the female of R. trojanicus vs. 0.48 mm in the female of R. diocletiani), the ratio of cheliceral length to breadth (1.96 in the male vs. 1.79 in the female of R. trojanicus vs. R 1.85–1.86 in both sexes of R. almissae), pedipalpal length (4.29 mm in the male vs. 6.895 mm in the female of R. trojanicus vs. 3.98 mm in the female of R. diocletiani), the ratio of pedipalpal femur length to breadth (3.83 in the male vs. 4.20 in the female of R. trojanicus vs. 3.48 in the female of R. diocletiani vs. R 3.13–3.28 in both sexes of R. almissae), the ratio of pedipalpal femur length to carapace length (1.14 in the male vs. 1.02 in the female of R. diocletiani vs. R 0.93–1.03 in both sexes of R. almissae), the ratio of pedipalpal chela length to breadth (3.10 in the male vs. 3.03 in the female of R. trojanicus vs. 2.86 in the female of R. diocletiani vs. R 3.05 in both sexes of R. almissae), the presence/absence of microsetae close to trichobothrium eb on the pedipalpal chela (present in the male vs. absent from the female of R. trojanicus), leg IV length (3.11 mm in the male vs. 3.93 mm in the female of R. trojanicus vs. 2.71 mm in the female of R. diocletiani), the ratio of femur IV length to breadth (2.96 in the male vs. 2.85 in the female of R. diocletiani vs. R 2.33–2.76 in both sexes of R. almissae), the degree of granulation of the pedipalps (trochanter with no granulations, femur with some granulations on its interior side distally, chela with granulations both on its exterior and interior sides in the male vs. pedipalps mostly smooth, only a few inconspicuous tubercles borne on femur both anteriorly and laterally in the female of R. trojanicus vs. trochanter with granulations, femur with well-developed granulations, chela with granulations on its interior side in the female of R. diocletiani vs. trochanter with no granulations, femur with some granulations on its interior side medially, chela with some granulations on its interior side in both sexes of R. almissae) and many other morphometric ratios and linear measurements (Figs 1a–1h; Table 1) (Ćurčić, 1988; Ćurčić et al., 2008, 2010, 2013b).

Fig. 2.

Distribution of new pseudoscorpion species from Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and related species: red circle – R. trojanicus, violet square – R. diocletiani, green pentagon – R. almissae, blue triangle – R. pecmliniensis sp. n., orange ellipse – R. ladestani sp. n., yellow star – R. anophthalmus, pink hexagon – R. travuniensis.

Description. Body colour brownish. Carapace longer than broad, with a pair of eyes (Fig. 1f ). Epistome triangular, well-developed (Fig. 1e). Carapace with 26 setae in four rows (4 + 8 + 8 + 6). Preocular microsetae absent.

Setal formula of abdominal tergites I–X: 8–11–11–11–11–12–12–11–19–9. Abdominal sternite II carrying 26 setae. Sternite III with 22 setae (15 in posterior row) and two suprastigmal microsetae on each side (Fig. 1h). Sternite IV carrying 10 setae and three suprastigmal microsetae on each side. Sternites V–X with 16–15–15–13–11–11 posterior setae.

Cheliceral spinneret well-developed (Fig. 1d). Cheliceral palm with six setae, movable finger with one seta. Flagellum eight-bladed. All flagellar blades pinnate along anterior margins (Fig. 1g).

Pedipalpal coxa with four long setae. Fixed and movable pedipalpal fingers with eight and four trichobothria, respectively (Fig. 1a). Teeth of both fingers small, close-set, occupying almost whole length of fingers. Fixed pedipalpal finger with 62 teeth, movable pedipalpal finger bearing 58 teeth (Fig. 1a; Table 1).

Pedipalpal trochanter and tibia smooth. Some fine granulations on interior side of pedipalpal femur distally. Pedipalpal chela ovate, with granulations on both interior and exterior sides and a few microsetae close to trichobothrium eb (Figs 1a, 1b).

Certain morphological structures (pedipalpal lyrifissures, nodus ramosus, micropores on the patellar and chelal pedicel, more detailed structure of the coxa, genital apparatus) could not be observed due to the condition of the specimen.

Trichobothriotaxy. Trichobothria eb, esb, ib and isb at finger base; esb slightly distal to eb; it closer to eb than to ib; trichobothrium ist closer to isb than to est, medially located on pedipalpal chela. Trichobothria b and sb in proximal finger half, st and t in distal finger half. Trichobothrium b closer to st than to finger tip. Distance sb–st longer than b–sb; t–st shorter than b–sb or sb–st.

Metatarsus IV and tarsus IV each with a single tactile seta (Fig. 1c).

Measurements and morphometric ratios of different morphological structures as presented in Table 1.

Distribution. At the present time, the new species is known to inhabit only its type locality: Jama višje Zađa (= Jama za Zle Poje) Pit, island of Lastovo, Dalmatia, southern Croatia (Fig. 2).

Etymology. The name of the new species is derived from Ladestanos, the Greek name for the Adriatic island of Lastovo (Dalmatia, Croatia), its terra typica.

Roncus pecmliniensis B. Ćurčić et Rađa sp. n. (Figs 3a–3h; Table 2)

Fig. 3.

Roncus pecmliniensis sp. n., holotype female: a – pedipalpal chela, b – flagellum, c – pedipalp, d – chelicera, e – epistome, f – leg IV, g – carapace, h – genital area. Scale bar (mm): a, c, f, g – 0.25; b, d, e, h – 0.50.

Material. The holotype (♀), labelled as follows: “Bosnia and Herzegovina, Herzegovina, Grude, village of Drinovci, hamlet of Peć Mlini, Ravlića Pećina Cave, latitude 43°20′20.8″ N, longitude 17°19′24.0″ E, 26.VIII.2012 (T. Rađa)” (white label, printed)/Holotypus Roncus pecmliniensis sp. n. B. Ćurčić et Rađa det. 2015 (red label, printed) (IZFB).

Diagnosis. The two closest known congeners of the new species are Roncus travuniensis Ćurčić et Dimitrijević 2007 (from the Arenstorfova Pećina Cave, Petrina hill, near Trebinje, southern Herzegovina) and R. anophthalmus (Ellingsen 1910) (from a number of caves and pits in Herzegovina and on the islands of Mljet and Šipan, Dalmatia) (Fig. 2). Roncus pecmliniensis sp. n. shares with them the absence of eyes and has a similar ratio of pedipalpal length to breadth and a similar ratio of tibia of leg IV length to breadth, but differs clearly in pedipalpal length (5.21 mm in the female vs. 5.83 mm in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 5.97 mm in the female of R. anophthalmus), the ratio of pedipalpal chela length to breadth (3.385 in the female vs. 3.49 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 3.22 in the female of R. anophthalmus), the ratio of pedipalpal chelal finger length to chelal palm length (1.17 in the female vs. 0.98 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 0.92 in the female of R. anophthalmus), the presence/absence of microsetae close to trichobothrium eb on the pedipalpal chela (absent from the female vs. present in the female of R. travuniensis), the setal formula of abdominal tergites I–X (7–10–11–11–12–11–11–11–10–10 in the female vs. 6–8–9–10–10–10–9–9–9–8 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 6–6–10–11–11–11–11–11–11–11 in the female of R. anophthalmus), the ratio of trochanter IV length to breadth (2.40 in the female vs. 2.65 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 2.02 in the female of R. anophthalmus), the ratio of femur + patella IV length to breadth (3.42 in the female vs. 3.14 in the female of R. travuniensis), the ratio of metatarsus IV length to breadth (2.09 in the female vs. 2.73 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 2.73 in the female of R. anophthalmus), the ratio of tarsus IV length to breadth (4.50 in the female vs. 4.90 in the female of R. travuniensis vs. 4.36 in the female of R. anophthalmus) and many other morphometric ratios and linear measurements (Figs 3a–3h; Table 2) (Beier, 1938, 1963; Ćurčić et al., 1995; Ćurčić, Dimitrijević, 2007). Specimens of R. anophthalmus from some Herzegovinian populations possess minute granulations in the middle part of the interolateral side of the pedipalpal femur, as in the case of R. pecmliniensis sp. n., while specimens of R. anophthalmus from Dalmatian populations and other Herzegovinian populations lack such granulations on the pedipalpal femur (Ćurčić et al., 1995). Granulation on the interior side of the pedipalpal chela in R. pecmliniensis sp. n. is more developed than that on the same podomere in R. travuniensis (Ćurčić, Dimitrijević, 2007).

Description. Body colour yellowish red. Carapace longer than broad (Fig. 3g; Table 2). Eyes not developed (Fig. 3g). Epistome small, apically rounded (Fig. 3e). Carapace with 22 setae in four rows (4 + 6 + + 6 + 6) (Fig. 3g). With no preocular microsetae. Carapace entirely reticulate.

Abdominal tergites and sternites uniseriate, entire, smooth. Setal formula of abdominal tergites I–X: 7–10–11–11–12–11–11–11–10–10. Abdominal sternite II with eight setae, sternite III with 15 posterior setae and three microsetae on each side, sternite IV with 11 posterior setae and three suprastigmal microsetae on each side (Fig. 3h). Sternites V–X with 13–14–13–13–13–12 setae. Abdominal segment XII with two pairs of small setae. Pleural membranes granulostriate.

Galea in the form of a slight elevation on movable cheliceral finger’s margin (Fig. 3d). Fixed cheliceral finger with six setae, movable cheliceral finger with one seta (Fig. 3d). Flagellum with eight blades, first seven of nearly equal size, pinnate along anterior margin, eighth blade smaller than others, not pinnate (Fig. 3b).

Apex of pedipalpal coxa with four long setae. Pedipalpal trochanter and tibia smooth, slender. Some fine granulations on interior side of pedipalpal femur medially. Pedipalpal chelal palm with some minute interior granulations (Figs 3a, 3c).

Fixed pedipalpal chelal finger with 56 teeth, movable pedipalpal chelal finger carrying 50 teeth (Fig. 3a). No microsetae close to trichobothrium eb on pedipalpal chela (Fig. 3a).

Certain morphological structures (pedipalpal lyrifissures, nodus ramosus, micropores on the patellar and chelal pedicel, more detailed structure of the coxa, genital apparatus) could not be observed due to the condition of the specimen.

Trichobothriotaxy. Trichobothria eb, esb, ib and isb at base of fixed finger. Esb slightly closer to ib than to eb. Trichobothrium it closer to est than to et; ist closer to isb than to est, medially located on pedipalpal chela; distance ist–ib shorter than ist–finger tip. Trichobothria b and sb in proximal finger half, st and t in distal finger half. Trichobothrium t closer to st than to finger tip. Distance sb–st somewhat longer than b–sb; t–st shorter than b–sb or sb–st (Figs 3a, 3c).

Tibia IV, metatarsus IV and tarsus IV each with a single tactile seta (Fig. 3f).

Measurements and morphometric ratios of different morphological structures as presented in Table 2.

Distribution. So far, the new species has been found only in the Ravlića Pećina Cave, village of Drinovci, Grude, Herzegovina, southwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina (Fig. 2).

Etymology. After the hamlet of Peć Mlini, village of Drinovci, where the Ravlića Pećina Cave, its terra typica, is located.