Turkish Journal of Zoology http://journals.tubitak.gov.tr/zoology/
Research Article
Turk J Zool (2018) 42: 389-393 © TÜBİTAK doi:10.3906/zoo-1710-26
A new species of the genus Microliobunum from Turkey (Opiliones, Sclerosomatidae) Kemal KURT* Şiran Vocational High School, Gümüşhane University, Gümüşhane, Turkey Received: 30.10.2017
Accepted/Published Online: 30.04.2018
Final Version: 26.07.2018
Abstract: A new harvestman species, Microliobunum erseni sp. nov., is described and illustrated with photographs of both sexes from Kilis Province, Turkey. It is the second species in this genus, which is otherwise known only from Lebanon. Key words: Opiliones, Sclerosomatidae, Microliobunum, new species, Turkey
1. Introduction Microliobunum Roewer, 1912 is a genus in the subfamily Leiobuninae, family Sclerosomatidae. The family consists of over 1340 species in over 150 genera with a worldwide distribution (Kury, 2013). Thus far there are only seven species (all in the Leiobuninae) known from Turkey (Kurt, 2014). Currently, there are only two species placed in combination with Microliobunum, namely Microliobunum brevipes Roewer, 1912 from Beirut (Lebanon) and Microliobunum iranum (Roewer, 1952) from Kerman (Iran) (Roewer, 1912, 1923; Cokendolpher, 1987). Snegovaya et al. (2018) described a new genus (Goasheer) for the species from Iran, leaving just the type species in the genus. The description of a new species herein will again bring the number of known species of this genus to two. The genus Microliobunum is recognized by the following morphological characters: small (3–5 mm) sclerosomatids with body hard, oval-shaped, granulose dorsally; no lateral abdominal sclerites, ozopores visible from above; ocular tubercle nearly equal in length and width, narrowed basally, not carinated; cephalothorax with only slightly raised area in front of ocular tubercle; chelicerae normal, not markedly modified, with ventral spur on basal segment; supracheliceral lamellae large and produced, covered by spines and tubercles; pedipalps normally structured, strong, robust, without apophysis or other modifications, male with ventral rows of microdenticles on tarsus; tarsal claw coarsely pectinate; legs short, all femora shorter than body length; femora without nodules or pseudosegments; femur IV with S-shaped curve, the lower half of which follows the shape of abdomen; leg coxae with anterior and posterior rows of lateral denticles (Roewer, 1912). * Correspondence:
[email protected]
The small body size, with short legs, and without a palpal apophysis, is similar to only two other Leiobuninae genera in the Old World: Goasheer Snegovaya et al., 2018 in Iran and Dilophiocara Redikorzev, 1931 from Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and Afghanistan) (Staręga, 1978; Cokendolpher, 1987). The palpal claws are toothed in Dilophiocara and Microliobunum, but not in the Goasheer. The genus Goasheer also has the male pedipalp with the tibiae modified into a groove on the retrolateral margin and the palpal claws are smooth. Dilophiocara and Microliobunum are most easily separated by the presence of a pronounced hump in front of the ocular area on the cephalothorax in the former. Here, I describe a new species of the genus Microliobunum from the Southeastern Anatolian Region of Turkey. 2. Materials and methods The samples examined in this study were collected by hand and by using forceps from under stones in southern Turkey (Kilis Province). Species description was conducted by using a Leica EZ4 stereomicroscope. The specimens examined were preserved in 70% ethanol and were deposited in the collection of the Arachnological Laboratory of Şiran Vocational School, Gümüşhane University (GUSAL), Gümüşhane, Turkey. 3. Results Sclerosomatidae Simon, 1879, genus Microliobunum Roewer, 1912 Microliobunum erseni sp. nov. (Figures 1–7) Material. Holotype: ♂ (GUSAL), Turkey: Kilis Province, Akçağıl village (36°46′50″N, 37°25′58″E), 752 m, 13
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Figure 1. Body of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov.: a) female, dorsal view; b) male, dorsal view.
Figure 2. Chelicera of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov.: a, b) chelicera, mesal and lateral view, male; c, d) chelicera, mesal and lateral view, female.
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Figure 3. Pedipalp of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov.: a, b) pedipalp, mesal and lateral view, male; c, d) pedipalp, mesal and lateral view, female.
Figure 4. a, b) Penis of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov., ventral view.
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Figure 6. Tarsal claw of pedipalp of female of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov.
Figure 7. Tibia of Leg II (above) and IV (below) of female of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov. Figure 5. Seminal receptacle of Microliobunum erseni sp. nov., female.
September 2013, leg. E. A. Yağmur. - Paratypes: 1 ♂, 4 ♀♀ (GUSAL); 2 ♀♀ (AZMM=Alaşehir Zoological Museum, Manisa), same data as holotype. Diagnosis: Microliobunum erseni sp. nov. differs from Microliobunum brevipes by the following morphological characters: body dorsally dark brown with light brown spots (pale yellow in M. brevipes), tibiae of legs II and IV without pseudosegments (II with two pseudosegments and IV with one pseudosegment in M. brevipes). Description. Male: Body length 3.25 mm; width 2.25 mm; chelicerae: basal segment 0.58 mm; distal segment 1.05 mm. Body (Figure 1): Approximately oval-shaped in dorsal view. Cephalothorax with slightly raised area in front of ocular tubercle. Cephalothorax covered with granules; between cephalothorax and abdomen, a deep rift along
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transverse line; abdomen dome-shaped and granular. Body ventrally bearing only granules. Genital operculum with lateral rows of three minute pointed granules and scattered small spines. Ocular tubercle: Nearly equal in length and width, narrowed basally, with obtuse tubercles; light yellow stripe in two rows. Supracheliceral lamellae consisting of two obtuse black tubercles covered with numerous small granules. Chelicerae (Figure 2): Not enlarged. Basal segment with spur ventrally, dorsally with 1–2 spines; distal segment covered with setae. Pedipalps (Figure 3): Without apophysis, strong; coxae with finger-shaped apophysis; trochanters with black tubercles and spines ventrally, dorsally with 1-2 spines; femora covered with black tubercles and spines ventrally; patella with black spines and setae laterally and dorsally; tibia with spines and setae; tarsus bearing only setae, but male tarsus covered with microdenticles ventrally, tarsal
KURT / Turk J Zool claw coarsely (3–6 teeth) pectinate. Length of palpal segments: femur 0.67, patella 0.32, tibia 0.41, tarsus 0.88; total length 2.28 mm. Legs: Short, robust; pairs I and III slightly thicker; femur I shorter than length of body; femur IV with S-shaped curve, the lower half of which follows the shape of abdomen; coxae with lateral rows of three black minute pointed granules. All segments (except tarsus) covered with black microdenticles, tarsus bearing only setae, tarsal claw smooth. Length of legs (in mm): I 1.7 + 0.66 + 1.42 + 1.5 + 2.5 = 7.78, II 2.7 + 0.76 + 2.39 + 2.5 + 5.5 = 13.85, III 1.65 + 0.67 + 1.43 + 1.7 + 3.4 = 8.85, IV 2.5 + 0.73 + 2.14 + 1.8 + 4 = 11.17. Male genital morphology (Figure 4): Truncus wide at base, narrowed towards subapex; widening again, taking form of wings; glans in straight prolongation of truncus, tapering into stylus; stylus short, acute. Coloration: Body dark brown, with round, elongated light brown spots. Basal segment of chelicerae dark brown, distal segment light brown. Pedipalps light brown (tarsus light yellow). Legs dark brown.
Female: Body length 4.85 mm; width 3.1 mm; chelicerae: basal segment 0.78 mm; distal segment 1.2 mm. General appearance similar to that of male, but body larger and wider (Figure 1). Length of palpal segments: femur 0.65, patella 0.32, tibia 0.44, tarsus 1.06; total length 2.47 mm. Length of legs (in mm): I 1.76 + 0.79 + 1.47 + 1.6 + 3.1 = 8.72, II 2.75 + 1.04 + 2.48 + 2.8 + 6 = 15.07, III 1.77 + 0.9 + 1.49 + 1.85 + 3.45 = 9.46, IV 2.54 + 0.95 + 2.16 + 2.58 + 4.05 = 12.28. Etymology: The specific epithet is in honor of Dr Ersen Aydın Yağmur (Celal Bayar University, Manisa, Turkey), who collected all the samples examined in the present study. Nomenclatural acts: This work and the nomenclatural acts it contains have been registered in ZooBank. The ZooBank Life Science Identifier (LSID) for this publication is: http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank. org:pub:FCB233AC-4F26-4707-87BF-46467D741215 Acknowledgment I am grateful to Dr JC Cokendolpher (Lubbock, TX, USA) for his critical remarks and improvement of the English.
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