Valid morphological characters in the systematics of the genus Sicarius (Walckenaer 1847) (Aranae: Sicariidae)

Abstract

Valid morphological characters in the systematics of the genus Sicarius (Walckenaer 1847) (Aranae: Sicariidae)?. The genus Sicarius has 23 species: 6 from south Africa, 1 from San Salvador and Costa Rica, 1 from Galapagos Islands, 1 from Brazil, 8 from Chile, and 3 from Peru. One of them S. terrosus (Nicolet 1849) is the Type-Species, it is also found in Peru and Argentina. In Argentina besides S. terrosus were collected S. rupestris (Holmberg 1881); S. patagonicus (Simon in Mello-Leitao 1919) and S. irregularis (Mello-Leitao 1940). Here is stablished the following synonymy: Sicarius irregularis (Mello-Leitao 1940) = Sicarius patagonicus (Simon in Mello-Leitao 1919). The characters mentioned up to now are discussed and the new ones are given: proportional length and breadth of the cephalotorax; distance of the medium eyes and lateral ones; prominence of the eye tubercle; form and position of the stridulating organ in the femur of the palpus; form of the tibia of the male palpus; form of the spermathecae. All these are illustrated with photographs made with the electronic microscope (scanning), the drawing of the spermathecae and tho map with the distribution of the species collected in Argentina.