Planochelas jingda Liu 2026, sp. nov.

Planochelas jingda Liu sp. nov. Materials Type status: Holotype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 6637; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: male; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: C0C0C398-229E-57A9-A42F-26AAFE953199; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 87 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'48.20"N, 115°01'29.01"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 08/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 6606; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: female; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: C24A4931-BA70-5804-B4E9-064FBEF2135C; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 87 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'48.20"N, 115°01'29.01"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 02/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 6638; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: female; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: F64F8B35-6216-546B-B19A-A9AF071CF8EF; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 87 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'48.20"N, 115°01'29.01"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 08/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 7067; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: male; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: 72C5E467-9767-548A-A41B-98F369E1A07D; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 73 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'43.78"N, 115°01'17.95"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 30/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 7147; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: female; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: B17F1130-439B-5434-A87E-598D32A73F16; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 87 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'48.20"N, 115°01'29.01"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 5/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 7148; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin, Zhang Bin; individualCount: 1; sex: female; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: 4934E59E-11C7-5640-88F5-49D29E54366B; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 71 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06′49.87″N, 115°01′48.74″E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 15/11/2025 Type status: Paratype. Occurrence: catalogNumber: ASM-JGSU-Ara 7149; recordedBy: Wang Yu-jin; individualCount: 1; sex: male; lifeStage: adult; occurrenceID: C451F294-55D2-54A7-A148-C83A2062F4E9; Taxon: scientificName: Planochelas jingda sp. nov.; Location: country: China; stateProvince: Jiangxi; locality: Ji'an City, Qingyuan District, Jinggangshan University; verbatimElevation: 73 m; verbatimCoordinates: 27°06'43.78"N, 115°01'17.95"E; georeferenceProtocol: GPS; Event: samplingProtocol: handing; eventDate: 30/11/2025 Description Male (holotype) (Figs 1, 4 A-C). Total length 2.43. Carapace (Fig. 1 A and B) length 1.01, width 0.83, flattened, with radial lines of fine pits on surface. Clypeus height 0.04. Eye (Fig. 1 A and B) diameters and interdistances: AME 0.07, ALE 0.06, PME 0.07, PLE 0.07; AME – AME 0.02, ALE-AME 0.01, PME – PME 0.06, PME-PLE 0.03, AME-PME 0.03, AME-PLE 0.07, ALE-ALE 0.14, PLE-PLE 0.22, ALE-PLE 0.03. MOA 0.17 long, front width 0.12, back width 0.19. Chelicerae, with sharp fangs, three promarginal and two retromarginal teeth. Endites approximately twice as long as wide, anteriorly with dense maxillar hair tuft, medially with distinct constriction. Labium trapezoidal, as long as wide, anteriorly with five to six strong setae. Sternum length 0.51, width 0.40, oval, longer than wide, anteromedially rounded, laterally with subtriangular extentions, posterior end truncated. Leg (Fig. 1 A and B) measurements: I 2.15 (0.75, 0.32, 0.48, 0.34, 0.26); II 2.29 (0.79, 0.32, 0.51, 0.39, 0.28); III 1.78 (0.62, 0.21, 0.35, 0.38, 0.22); IV 2.36 (0.82, 0.31, 0.47, 0.41, 0.35); formula: 4213. Leg spination: I Ti: d 2; II Ti: d 2; III Fe: d 1; Ti: v 1; IV Fe: d 2; Pa: d 1; Ti: v 1. Abdomen (Fig. 1 A and B) 1.42 long, 0.81 wide, scutum covering entire dorsum, surface smooth, with scattered short, fine setae; venter with three sclerites, including trapezoidal epigastric sclerite, boat-shaped medial sclerite and large ovoid posterior sclerite. Spinnerets very short, with many short thick setae around surface. Colouration (Fig. 1). Carapace, chelicerae, endites, sternum and labium reddish-brown. Legs yellow to dark brown. Abdomen dark-brown, dorsally mottled, venter with eleven to twelve pairs of brown dots medially. Palp (Fig. 1 C-E and Fig. 2). Dorsal femoral apophysis thick hook-shaped, very strong, with sharp apex, as long as femur. Retrolateral femoral apophysis short and blunt. Patella and tibia without apophysis, former partly encircling latter. Sperm duct S-shaped in ventral view. Embolus short, arising at end of tegulum, located at the apical cymbial groove, with broad base and slightly curved apex. Conductor membranous, as long as 2 / 3 embolic length, with a clavate base. Female (Paratype) (Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 D-F). As in male, except as noted. Total length 2.46. Carapace (Fig. 3 A and B) length 1.00, width 0.82. Sternum length 0.68, width 0.51. Clypeus height 0.03. Eye (Fig. 3 A and B) diameters and interdistances: AME 0.06, ALE 0.08, PME 0.05, PLE 0.08; AME – AME 0.02, ALE-AME 0.02, PME – PME 0.08, PME-PLE 0.03, AME-PME 0.04, AME-PLE 0.11, ALE-ALE 0.14, PLE-PLE 0.25, ALE-PLE 0.02. MOA 0.15 long, front width 0.12, back width 0.20. Legs (Fig. 3 A and B) measurements: I 2.17 (0.72, 0.35, 0.51, 0.34, 0.25); II 2.22 (0.73, 0.27, 0.49, 0.43, 0.3); III 1.93 (0.69, 0.21, 0.41, 0.37, 0.28); IV 2.81 (0.90, 0.42, 0.58, 0.56, 0.35). Leg spination: I Pa: d 2; Ti: d 3, pl 1; II Pa: d 1; Ti: d 3, pl 1; III Fe: d 1; Ti: v 1; IV Fe: d 2; Pa: d 1; Ti: v 1. Abdomen (Fig. 3 A and B) 1.46 long, 0.98 wide, without scutum and sclerite. Colouration (Fig. 3 A and B). Abdominal dorsum with four to five chevrons posteriorly. Epigyne (Fig. 3 C and D). Epigynal plate as long as wide. Moderately sclerotised in posterior medial area, with broad median septum. Copulatory openings horseshoe-shaped, situated posterolaterally. Vulvae with a pair of oval spermatheca 1, a pair of large sausage-shaped spermatheca 2 and a pair of C-shaped connecting tubes between them. Fertilisation ducts leaf-shaped, directed anteriorly. Diagnosis Males of the new species resemble those of Planochelas botulus Lyle & Haddad, 2009 (Lyle and Haddad (2009): 93, figs. 15-16) and P. brevis Khoza & Lyle, 2019 (Khoza and Lyle (2019): 150, figs. 9-10) in having an S-shaped sperm duct, the anterior tegulum with an arched ridge and the slightly curved embolus situated distally on tegulum, but can be distinguished (Fig. 1 C-E and Fig. 2) by the hook-shaped dorsal femoral apophysis without denticles (vs. two small, sharp denticles on the horn-like dorsal femoral apophysis in P. botulus; blunt denticles on short and blunt dorsal femoral apophysis in P. brevis), the short and blunt retrolateral femoral apophysis (vs. needle-like in P. botulus; absent in P. brevis), the digitiform conductor (vs. absent in P. botulus and P. brevis) and the embolus located within the apical cymbial groove (vs. not situated within a distinct apical groove in P. botulus and P. brevis). The female is similar to those of P. botulus (Lyle and Haddad (2009): 93, figs. 11-12) and P. brevis (Khoza and Lyle (2019): 150, figs. 12-13) in having large sausage-shaped spermatheca 2, oval spermatheca 1 and the fertilisation duct directed anteriorly, but can be separated from them (Fig. 3 C and D) by the broad median septum (vs. narrow in P. botulus and moderate in P. brevis). Etymology The name is taken from Jinggangshan University, referring to the type locality; noun in apposition. Common Chinese name: 井大平蛛. Distribution Known only from Ji'an City, in Jiangxi Province, China (Fig. 5). Ecology The specimens were collected from under the bark (Fig. 4) of plane trees (e. g. P. acerifolia, P. occidentalis and P. orientalis) by hand.