Two new theridiid genera from Southeast Asia (Araneae: Theridiidae, Argyrodinae): males with a nose for courtship
Authors: Herman Vanuytven, Rudy Jocqué and Christa Deeleman-Reinhold
The family Theridiidae is among the largest spider families but also among those in which a high number of undescribed species is expected (AGNARSSON et al. 2013). In tropical canopy surveys in Southeast Asia, Theridiidae tend to be the largest family and make up from a quarter to one-third of all the species recorded (RUSSELL-SMITH & STORK 1994, 1995; FLOREN & DEELEMAN-REINHOLD 2005).
A large proportion of the species in these samples appears to be undescribed, not in the least the representatives of the subfamily Argyrodinae, very common in these canopy collections. The subfamily contains seven genera (Argyrodes Simon, 1864, Ariamnes Thorell, 1869, Deelemanella Yoshida, 2003, Faiditus Keyserling, 1884, Neospintharus Exline, 1950, Rhomphaea L. Koch, 1872 and Spheropistha Yaginuma, 1957).
In the major analysis of the Theridiidae (AGNARSSON 2004), the subfamily was defined on the base of five of these genera. VANUYTVEN (2021) remarked that the boundaries between the genera are not always sharp as also stated in AGNARSSON (2004: 477). It is clear that the knowledge on the systematics of the subfamily is still in its infancy concerning both the number of species it contains and the relationships within it.
This paper reports on the discovery of two more genera Rhinocosmetus gen. nov. and Rhinoliparus gen. nov. in the Argyrodinae and provides new insights into the composition of the subfamily. It also defines a type of setae that had not yet been described.
