On the Pardosa monticola species-group (Araneae: Lycosidae) from middle Asia

Abstract

The Pardosa monticola-group from Middle Asian countries (southern Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan) is revised. Among the material studied we recognized eight morphospecies, seven of which are new to science: P. fritzeni sp.n. (O+, Kyrgyzstan), P. zonsteini sp.n. (O+, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan), P. ovtchinnikovi sp.n. (O+, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan), P. trottai sp.n. (O+, Kyrgyzstan), P. mikhailovi sp.n. (O+, Kazakhstan), P. gromovi sp.n. (O+5, Kazakhstan) and P. pantinii sp.n. (O+, Tajikistan). All known species from Middle Asia, including the single named species P. pontica (Thorell, 1875) from western Turkmenistan and two species from adjacent countries: P. pseudomixta Marusik et Fritzen, 2009 (Xinjiang, China) and P. pseudotorrentum Miller et Buchar, 1972 (Hindu-Kush, northern Afghanistan) are illustrated. Male palps of Middle Asian species are very similar to each other but males of the different species can be easily identified by their general habitus or their first pair of legs in terms of colour, pubescence, relative length and spination. Females are not easily separated due to a lack of diagnostic characters and considerable intraspecific variation. Keys to the males of the 10 species treated in this paper are provided. © ARTHROPODA SELECTA, 2012.