Recifella rotundiseta, Smit & Pešić, 2025

Recifella rotundiseta sp. nov.

Figs. 14 – 15 View FIGURE 14 View FIGURE 15 , 16B View FIGURE 16

Material examined. Holotype, male, Northern Territory, Wangi Creek upstream of Wangi Falls, Litchfield NP , 13°09.832 S 130°41.166 E, 25-ix-2005, dissected and slide mounted ( NTM) GoogleMaps . Paratype: same data as the holotype, 1/0/0 (in fluid, RMNH) GoogleMaps .

Diagnosis. Dorsal shield coloration conspicuous blue; III-leg-5 with a long, heavy distoventral seta with large pectinations; IV-leg-5 with an S-shaped ventral margin; three specialized setae of IV-leg-5 short and with thick pectinations, the middle seta not blade-like but rounded at its tip.

Description. Male. Dorsal and ventral shield present; dorsal shield 422 long and 338 wide, with four pairs of glandularia, fused posteriorly with the ventral shield. Postocularia fused with the ventral shield; no glandularia lying in the dorsal furrow. Posterior pairs of dorsal shield on large tubercles ( Figure 14B View FIGURE 14 ). Dorsal shield with a peculiar coloration, as illustrated in Figure 16B View FIGURE 16 : two longitudinal blue bands fused in the anterior part of the shield. Ventral shield 481 long and 419 wide, tips of first coxal plates rounded.Apodemes of anterior coxal plates extending beyond the middle of third coxal plates. Genital plates fused with the ventral shield with approximately 20-26 pairs of acetabula, 209 wide between outer margins of acetabula; gonopore 70 long. Excretory pore terminal ( Figure 14A View FIGURE 14 )

Palp as illustrated in Figures 14C – D View FIGURE 14 : dorsal length/height: P1, 21/28; P2, 84/48; P3, 40/39; P4, 89/28; P5, 29/16. dorsal heavy seta at the tip of P5 widely diverging the more ventral two. Gnathosoma with anchoral process 104 long. Chelicera 131 long,

Dorsal lengths of I-leg: 48, 101, 95, 142, 166, 166; dorsal lengths of III-leg-2–6: 100, 94, 141, 156, 133; III-leg-5 with a long, heavy distoventral seta with large pectinations ( Figure 15B View FIGURE 15 , inset); dorsal lengths of IV-leg-2–6: 81, 97, 156, 209, 141; IV-leg-5 bowed, with an S-shaped ventral margin; the three specialized setae of IV-leg-5 short and with pectinations as illustrated in Figure 15D View FIGURE 15 (inset). The middle of the three specialized setae rounded at its tip. III-leg-3 with one, III-leg-4 and 5 each with three swimming setae; IV-leg-3 with one distoventral, IV-leg-4 and 5 each with three distoventral swimming setae.

Etymology. Named after the middle of the three specialized setae having a rounded tip.

Remarks. The new species resembles Recifella kimberleyensis Smit, 2007 , a species known from Western Australia ( Smit 2007). The latter species differs in one of the three specialized setae of IV-leg-4 is without pectinations, while all specialized setae of the new species have pectinations. Smit (2007) did not mention the peculiar colouration of the dorsal shield of R. kimberleyensis .