Antikuna, a new genus with seven new species from Peru (Araneae: Theraphosidae: Theraphosinae) and the highest altitude record for the family

ABSTRACT

Antikuna, a new genus from Peruvian Andes, was proposed, diagnosed and described, to include seven new species: Antikuna cernickai sp. nov., A. cimrmani sp. nov., A. cyanofemur sp. nov., A. majkusi sp. nov., A. sapallanga sp. nov., A. urayrumi sp. nov. and A. valladaresi sp. nov. Antikuna gen. nov. is characterised by having the type III urticating setae concentrated in one dorsal patch, ventral side of maxillae with short spiniform setae in apical half, the male bulb carrying four keels, prolateral superior, prolateral inferior, apical and subapical keel terminating in a short tooth, and the female spermathecae consisting of two separate divergent seminal receptacles, carrying one or more ventral keels, and dorsally with distinct oval apical lobe, which is narrower than the receptacle neck. In the males of Antikuna gen. nov. the flexion of metatarsi I is between both branches of tibial apophyses and prolateral cymbial lobe is distinctly larger than retrolateral one. Antikuna gen. nov. inhabits altitudes above 3,800 m a.s.l. and A. valladaresi sp. nov. was found in the altitude of 4,689 m a.s.l. representing a new highest altitude record for the family Theraphosidae.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:537E9E34-2888-4F99-B4A9-74A965F0E456

KEYWORDS:

• Mygalomorphae
• South America
• Peru
• taxonomy

Acknowledgements

We would like to express our gratitude to the following persons who helped us with this paper. To Manuel Valladares who found and donated specimens to MUSM and for providing their natural history data and photographs ‘in life’, to Diana Silva Dávila from Museo de Historia Natural, Lima, Peru for her assistance during a visit to the MUSM spider collection and to two anonymous reviewers for their comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. The field work in Peru was carried out under collection permit No. 0364-2013-MINAGRI-DGFFS/DGEFFS, No. 154-2016-SERFOR-DGGSPFFS and No. 282-2018-MINAGRI-SERFOR-DGGSPFFS.

Disclosure statemet

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).