Tegenaria taurica Charitonov, 1947

Tegenaria taurica Charitonov, 1947 View in CoL

Figs 1 B View Figure 1 , 3 View Figure 3 , 4 View Figure 4 , 5 View Figure 5

Tegenaria taurica Charitonov, 1947: Charitonov 1947 a: 44 –49, 51, 54, figs 4, 5; Charitonov 1947 b: 1; Birstein 1963: 128; Tyshchenko 1971: 23, 156, 161, 163; Mikhailov 1997: 145; Mikhailov 1998: 22; Esyunin and Farzalieva 2001: 261–263, figs 1–5; Kovblyuk 2002: 105; Amelichev et al. 2004: 136, 140; Evtushenko 2004: 66, 68; Kovblyuk 2004 a: 214; Kovblyuk 2004 b: 43, 45, 47–48, figs 2, 3 (1); Kovblyuk 2004 c: 254, 256; Zagorodniuk and Vargovitsh 2004: 207; Kovblyuk 2010: 224; Mikhailov 2013: 141; Bolzern et al. 2013: 776, 803, 818, 846; Kovblyuk 2014: 34, 44, 51; Kovblyuk and Kastrygina 2015: 6; Turbanov et al. 2016 b: 1283; Prokopov and Turbanov 2017: 101; Mammola et al. 2018: table S 1; Samokhin et al. 2019: 247. View in CoL View Cited Treatment

Tegenaria domestica (Clerck, 1757): Kovblyuk 2014: 44. View in CoL

Tegenaria civilis Walk. [sic!]: Lebedinsky 1904: 77.

Tegenaria derhami (Scopoli, 1763): Charitonov 1932: 21; Charitonov 1939: 197.

Tegenaria sp.: Evtushenko 2004: 67; Zagorodniuk and Vargovitsh 2004: 208; Turbanov et al. 2019 a: 218.

Meta menardi (Latreille, 1804): Lebedinsky 1914: 115, 117, 121–122; Charitonov 1932: 123; Charitonov 1939: 197; Tyshchenko 1971: 190; Mikhailov 1997: 108; Kovblyuk 2004 a: 245; Mikhailov 2013: 101; Kovblyuk 2014: 44; Kovblyuk and Kastrygina 2015: 56. View in CoL

Material examined.

• 2 ♂♂ ( TNU 10260 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, nr Balaklava, southern slope of Mt. Asketi, Asketi I Cave , 26. IX. 2015, O. V. Kukushkin leg. • 7 ♀♀ ( TNU 10259/1 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, nr Balaklava, Aya Cape Mt. Range, Mt. Kala-Fatlar, Izumrudnaya Cave , 20. III. 2016, O. V. Kukushkin leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10180/1 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, nr Balaklava, Aya Cape Mt. Range, Mt. Kala-Fatlar, Gekkonovaya Cave , 09. X. 2016, A. A. Nadolny leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10287/1 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, Tshernaya River canyon, Tshernoretshenskaya Cave , 3. VI. 2021, I. S. Turbanov, A. A. Nadolny leg. • 1 ♀ ( IT), Crimea, Sevastopol, northeastern slope of Baidarskаya Yaila, Baidarskaya Valley, nr Kizilovoye Vil., Mamut-Tshokrak Cave , 26. VII. 2010, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10257/3 ), 1 ♀ ( IT), Crimea, Sevastopol, northwestern slope of Ai-Petri Yaila, Baidarskaya Valley, nr Rodnikovskoye Vil., entrance to Skelskaya Cave , 29. IX. 2020, A. A. Nadolny leg. • 2 ♀♀ ( TNU 10197 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, NW slope of Ai-Petri Yaila, nr Karadagh Forest, Rodnikovskaya Cave , 4. II. 2014, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 3 ♀♀ ( TNU 10196 ), Crimea, Sevastopol, northwestern slope of Ai-Petri Yaila, nr Karadagh Forest, Koryta (= Kuznetsova) Cave , 8. III. 2014, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( IT), Crimea, Sevastopol, southwestern part of Ai-Petri Yaila, Mortsheka Mt., Druzhba Cave , 3. X. 2020, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10261/1 ), Crimea, Bakhchisarai Distr., northern part of Ai-Petri Yaila, Mt. Ayu-Teshik, Ayu-Teshik Cave , 8. V. 2015, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10227 ), Crimea, Bakhchisarai Distr., nr Stshastlivoe Vil., northwestern slope of Yalta Yaila, Khaplu-Kaya Mt., Kaply-Kayanskaya (Khaplu-Khoba) Cave , 29. VI. 2017, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( TNU 10195/1 ), Crimea, Simferopol Distr., northern part of Tshatyr-Dagh Yaila, Binbash-Koba Cave , 12. II. 2015, I. S. Turbanov leg. • 1 ♀ ( IT), Crimea, Simferopol Distr., nr Perevalnoye Vil., western slope of Dolgorukovskaya Yaila, Kizil-Koba (= Krasnaya) Cave , 5. XI. 2014, I. S. Turbanov leg.

Distribution.

Endemic of the Crimean Mountains ( Kovblyuk and Kastrygina 2015). However, there is a dubious record from Georgia ( Mkheidze 1997), which has never been confirmed by any collected material ( Kovblyuk and Kastrygina 2015).

Records from the Crimean caves.

Map (Fig. 17 A View Figure 17 – orange circle). Tegenaria taurica is known from caves in the western and central parts of the Crimean Mountains: small unnamed cave (=? Malaya Cave) in Nizhnie Limeny (now Goluboi Zaliv, region of Yalta; the locality for male syntype T. taurica – sensu Charitonov 1947 a), Asketi I, Izumrudnaya, Gekkonovaya, Tshernoretshenskaya, Mamut-Tshokrak, Skelskaya, Rodnikovskaya, Koryta, Druzhba, Ayu-Teshik (= Ayutishik-Koba; the locality for female syntype T. taurica – sensu Charitonov 1947 a), Daniltsha-Koba, Kaply-Kayanskaya, Ayu-Koba, Binbash-Koba, Kizil-Koba, and grotto in Massandra (the type locality as that of the lectotype – sensu Esyunin and Farzalieva 2001), grotto on Mt. Yuznaya Demerdzhi ( Lebedinsky 1904, 1914; Charitonov 1947 a; Esyunin and Farzalieva 2001; Kovblyuk 2004 b; Samokhin et al. 2019; Turbanov et al. 2019 a; present data).

Ecology.

A troglophile ( Mammola et al. 2018). There is a single record of T. taurica from an anthropogenic biotope ( Kovblyuk 2004 b), which in fact refers to T. parietina (1 ♂ ( TNU 1630/1 ), Yalta, indoors, 17. X. 2001 – examined), the remaining findings have been from caves (present data). Thus, this species is here referred to as eutroglophile.

Remarks.

According to Charitonov (1947 a, b), who described T. taurica on the basis of the collection of spiders reported earlier by Lebedinsky (1904, 1914), the earlier records of T. civilis , T. derhami and partly of Meta menardi from the Crimean caves ( Lebedinsky 1904, 1914; Charitonov 1932, 1939) should in fact be assigned to T. taurica . Yet, a number of researchers, although with doubt, have continued to erroneously report on M. menardi for the Crimean caves ( Tyshchenko 1971; Mikhailov 1997; Kovblyuk 2004 a, 2014; Mikhailov 2013; Kovblyuk and Kastrygina 2015). The report on T. domestica in the Crimean caves is erroneous ( Kovblyuk 2014), as it was based on the record of T. civilis by Lebedinsky (1904), and actually belongs to T. taurica (M. M. Kovblyuk, pers. comm.). The records of Tegenaria sp. from Mamut-Tshokrak Cave ( Turbanov et al. 2019 a) and Kizil-Koba Cave ( Evtushenko 2004) should also be assigned to T. taurica , which has been confirmed by the present study (see Material examined).

Tegenaria taurica was redescribed by Esyunin and Farzalieva (2001), who also designated the lectotype based on the material from the Massandra grotto nr Yalta. Among the paralectotypes there is the specimen labelled as follows: “ 1 slide preparation of palp (PSU), Crimea, Nizhnie Limeny, Malaya Caves, 08–22. IX. 1916, leg. L. A. Lants ”. The male used for the description of T. taurica was collected from the same cave (see Charitonov 1947 a: 47, 51).

The mention of T. taurica for Tuakskaya (= Ful-Koba) Cave was presumably based on the erroneous label “ Ayu-Tishik-Koba. Tuvak. Meta spes? vois. de Menardi ” (see Charitonov 1947 a: 45) and “ Ayutishik-Koba [caves], Tuvak, 1905, leg. Ya. N. Lebedinskii ” (see Esyunin and Farzalieva 2001: 261), when two different caves are mistakenly indicated: viz., Ayu-Teshik (as Ayu-Tishik-Koba and Ayutishik-Koba) and Tuakskaya (as Tuvak), whereas they are situated in different parts of the Crimean Mountains. However, in the original work by Lebedinsky (1914), T. taurica (as Meta menardi ) is recorded from Ayu-Teshik Cave, and Palliduphantes khobarum (as Lephthyphantes [sic!] monticola ) from Tuakskaya Cave. Our repeated survey in Tuakskaya Cave has confirmed that the only spider species occurring there is P. khobarum .

We consider it appropriate to provide an illustrated description of the copulatory organs of both sexes of T. taurica from the Crimean caves (Figs 3 View Figure 3 – 5 View Figure 5 ). The cymbium and tibia + patella lengths are equal (Fig. 3 С). Tibia has three apophyses (Fig. 4 E – G View Figure 4 ): dorsal apophysis pointed and well sclerotised (Fig. 4 A, C, E View Figure 4 ), ventral and lateral – rounded and poorly sclerotised (Fig. 4 A, D, E View Figure 4 ); embolus originated at 320 ° position and terminating at about 210 ° position, makes an ellipsoid trajectory and holds it distal part in conductor (Figs 3 D, F View Figure 3 , 4 B View Figure 4 ); conductor with two arms in longitudinal position; embolic and conductor tips directed posteriorly (Figs 3 A – C View Figure 3 , 4 A, B View Figure 4 ); median apophysis flat with sharped tip directed ventrally (Figs 3 B View Figure 3 , 4 C, D View Figure 4 ). Epigyne with trapezoid plate (Fig. 5 A View Figure 5 ); lateral borders of epigynal plate poorly recognised (Fig. 5 E, F View Figure 5 ); spermatheca massive, makes two curves – ventral and sagittal (Fig. 5 C, G, I View Figure 5 ); head of spermatheca variable (Fig. 5 D, H View Figure 5 ).