Zhi-Sheng Zhang

Diversity of spiders in Fanjing Mountain Nature Reserve, Guizhou, China, I: Six new species of Phrurolithidae (Araneae)

Male and female specimens of six new spider species of the family Phrurolithidae were collected from the Fanjing Mountain Nature Reserve: Otacilia microstoma sp. nov., O. songi sp. nov., O. subliupan sp. nov., Phrurolithus anticus sp. nov., P. fanjingshan sp. nov. and P. zhouyun sp. nov.. Photographs, line drawings and descriptions of all species are provided in the current study. Additionally, the assignment of each species has been discussed on the basis of the type species of Otacilia Thorell, 1897 and Phrurolithus C. L. Koch, 1839.

New Otacilia species from Southwest China (Araneae: Phrurolithidae)

The present paper describes nine new Otacilia species from Southwest China: O. mira sp. nov. (♀, ♂) and O. pyriformis sp. nov. (♀, ♂) from Chongqing, O. papilion sp. nov. (♀, ♂) from Guizhou, O. aurita sp. nov. (♀, ♂), O. digitata sp. nov. (♂), O. leibo sp. nov. (♀, ♂) and O. ovata sp. nov. (♀, ♂) from Sichuan, O. acuta sp. nov. (♀, ♂) and O. flexa sp. nov. (♀, ♂) from Yunnan. Line drawings, photos and descriptions of all new species are presented. In addition, the 21 known Chinese Otacilia species are divided into three species groups.

A new species of the genus Hahnia (Araneae: Hahniidae) from South China.

The spider genus Hahnia C.L. Koch 1841, which includes 94 species in the world (World Spider Catalog 2015), is the largest group of the comb-tailed spider family, Hahniidae Bertkau 1878. However, this genus appears to be polyphyletic. For example, H. xinjiangensis Wang & Liang 1989 (Wang & Liang 1989: 52, figs 1-6) and H. talei (Gertsch 1934) (Gertsch 1934: 13, figs 5-8, 27-28) exhibit patterns of their copulatory organs that differ from those of the type species H. pusilla C.L. Koch 1841 and other allied species, H. helveola Simon 1875 and H. ononidum Simon 1875 etc. (Almquist 2005: figs 258a-e, 261a-e, 262a-f). Hahnia s. str. has an equidistant tracheal spiracle between the epigastric furrow and the base of spinnerets, a hook-like patellar apophysis, a long and curved tibial apophysis, a threadlike embolus, a membranous median apophysis and a retrolateral cymbial furrow and tube-like and curved copulatory ducts and two epigynal bursae (spermathecae and subspermathecae, see Zhang et al. 2011).

New species of Pseudopoda Jäger, 2000 from Southern China (Araneae, Sparassidae)

Abstract Four new species of the huntsman spider genus Pseudopoda Jäger, 2000 are described from Southern China: Pseudopoda acuminata sp. n. from Suiyang County, Guizhou Province, P. emei sp. n. from Emei Mountain, Sichuan Province, P. lacrimosa sp. n. from Fugong County and Tengchong County, Yunnan Province, and P. robusta sp. n. fromJinyun Mountain, Chongqing Municipality.

The first record of Amaurobius C.L. Koch, 1837 (Araneae, Amaurobiidae) from China, with description of two new species

Two new species of Amaurobius from China, A. songi sp. nov. and A. spinatus sp. nov. are described on morphological characters of males and females. They are generally very similar to all known Amaurobius species from India, Europe and North America but differ in some details of the copulatory organs. The two species represent the first record of Amaurobius in China.

Review of the comb-tailed spider genus Hahnia C.L. Koch 1841 (Hahniidae) from Gaoligong Mountains in Yunnan, China

Gaoligong Mountains in Yunnan, China are famous for the biodiversity and are part of Indo-Burmese hotspot. We present a review on the comb-tailed spider genus Hahnia C.L. Koch 1841 based on newly collected specimens. Four new species of Hahnia are described: H. biapophysis sp. nov. (male), H. dongi sp. nov. (male), H. subsaccata sp. nov. (male, female) and H. wangi sp. nov. (male, female). Two additional known species are redescribed: H. himalayaensis Hu & Zhang, 1990 and H. musica Brignoli, 1978. Hahnia musica previously known from Bhutan is recorded from China for the first time. Photos of habitus and genitalia of all species and additionally illustrations of new species are given.

A new Bifidocoelotes species, with the description of the male of B. primus from Hong Kong, China (Agelenidae: Coelotinae)

Both sexes of two Bifidocoelotes species, Bifidocoelotes obscurus sp. nov. and B. primus (Fox, 1937), were collected in Hong Kong, China. The male of B. primus was previously unknown. Descriptions and illustrations of both species are provided and the generic diagnosis is revised.

Three new Sinopoda species (Araneae: Sparassidae) from southern China.

Three new species of the huntsman spider genus Sinopoda Jäger, 1999, collected from Sichuan Province and Chongqing Municipality, P. R. China, are described: Sinopoda cochlearia sp. nov. (male, female), S. globosa sp. nov. (male, female) and S. longiducta sp. nov. (male, female). All three new species were collected from native forest by hand.

Description of two unknown females of Epeus Peckham & Peckham from China (Araneae: Salticidae)

The jumping spider genus Epeus Peckham & Peckham presently includes 15 species, mainly from South and Southeast Asia (World Spider Catalog 2015). Species of this genus have the cymbium of male palp flattened and elongated, with a basal apophysis retrolaterally, pointing postero-ventrally; tegulum with a tongue-like process; filiform embolus; and epigyne with long copulatory ducts with several loops.

Redescription of three Hippasa species from China (Araneae: Lycosidae), with a proposed species group-division and diagnosis

The genus Hippasa is a group of web-weaving lycosids, whose web is funnel-like, quite similar to those of the Agelenidae. In this paper, based on published papers and specimens from China, we diagnose and discuss the composition of this genus. Two species groups are recognised, the Hippasa greenalliae-group (12 species and a subspecies) mainly from Asia and the Hippasa partita-group (17 species), which is distributed in both South Asia and Africa. In China, there are three Hippasa species: H. holmerae Thorell, 1895, H. lingxianensis Yin & Wang, 1980 (revalidated) and H. lycosina Pocock, 1900. The Japanese species, H. babai Tanikawa, 2007 is newly synonymised with H. lingxianensis. Two Hippasa species, H. agelenoides (Simon, 1884) and H. greenalliae (Blackwall, 1867) have never been found in China. Morphological illustrations, photos and redescriptions of H. holmerae, H. lingxianensis and H. lycosina are provided, based on Chinese specimens.