On the genus Diphya: notes on the Brazilian D. bicolor and a new species from Ecuador (Araneae: Tetragnathidae)

ABSTRACT In this paper a new species of Diphya Nicolet, 1849, D. napo sp. nov. is described based on males and females from Ecuador. The female of Diphya bicolor Vellard, 1926 is described and illustrated for the first time and new records are presented. Oarces ornatus Mello-Leitão, 1935 and Azilia eximia (Mello-Leitão, 1940) are synonymized with D. bicolor, being A. eximia removed from the synonym of Azilia Keyserling, 1881 and being Cardimia Mello-Leitão, 1940 considered synonym of Diphya.

The genus Diphya was proposed by Nicolet (1849), with the type species D. macrophtalma Nicolet, 1849 from Chile.The genus contains 20 species, of which five have been described from South America: D. bicolor Vellard, 1926from Brazil, D. limbata Simon, 1896from Chile and Argentina, D. spinifera Tullgren, 1902, D. rugosa Tullgren, 1902 and the type species from Chile (World Spider Catalog, 2023).
Diphya is currently considered a Tetragnathinae, after a phylogeny performed by Álvarez-Padilla & Hormiga (2011).The genus appears as sister group of the clade formed by Glenognatha + Pachygnatha and Cyrtognatha + Tetragnatha.A series of characters are diagnostic of Diphya in relation to the other genera (Álvarez-Padilla & Hormiga, 2011), but the AME and PLE considerably smaller than the remaining eyes and located on separate tubercles, and legs I and II armed with a mesal row of macrosetae (see Tanikawa, 1995;Álvarez-Padilla & Hormiga, 2011).
The Brazilian species Diphya bicolor was described by Vellard (1926) from a single male collected in the state of Rio de Janeiro.The female has not been described so far.The type material was supposed to be deposited at the Instituto Vital Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, but it was never located and is considered lost.By examining material of the species from different states in the Southern, Southeastern and Northeastern Brazil, we concluded that they belong to a single species and that they correspond to Diphya bicolor as described by Vellard (1926).Consequently, we present here the redescription of the male and described the female of the species and present new records of the species from Brazil.In addition, we described a new species of Diphya from Ecuador, an unprecedented country record in the distribution range of this genus.Finally, the species Oarces ornatus Mello-Leitão, 1935 andAzilia eximia (Mello-Leitão, 1940) are synonymized with D. bicolor, being A. eximia removed from the synonym of Azilia Keyserling, 1881 and being Cardimia Mello-Leitão, 1940 considered synonym of Diphya.

MATERIAL AND METHODS
The material examined is deposited in the following collections (curators in parenthesis): IBSP, Instituto Butantan, Note.In this study, we had the opportunity to correct a historical mistake made by Levi (2002), who synonymized Cardimia, proposed in Araneidae, with Azilia Keyserling, 1881.Before the fire at the Museu Nacional do Rio de Janeiro, we had the opportunity to examine the type of Cardinia eximia Mello-Leitão, 1940.The comparison of the type with specimens of Diphya bicolor allows us to transfer this synonymy to Diphya, correcting the proposition of Levi (2002).
Note.Color of alive specimens with red carapace; abdomen anteriorlly white and posteriorlly reddish-brown .Etymology.The species name is a noun in apposition taken from the type locality.
Diagnosis.The male palp of Diphya napo sp.nov.resembles the South American species of Dyphia by the shape of cymbium, embolus, conductor and also the rounded prolateral paracymbium; however it can be easily distinguished from all known South American species by the shape of the retrolateral tibial apophysis, which is flattened, slightly C-shaped in the prolateral and retrolateral view, elongated, with internal groove on bulb facing side and a very conspicuous spur at distal end (Figs 8F, H-J); retrolateral tibial apophysis is inconspicuous in D. bicolor (see 11,15,16), hook-like in D. spinifera (see also Álvarez-Padilla & Hormiga, 2011:744, fig.29C,  F) and finger-like in D. macrophtalma (see Marusik & Omelko, 2017:4-5, figs 12, 16-18).Females of Diphya napo sp.nov.can be recognized by the epigynum without a conspicuous marginal plate and anterior pockets, by the presence of a septum dividing the whole atrium and by the large, triangular-shaped basal plate .The last character is shared between D. napo and African species of the genus (see Omelko et al., 2020:275-276, figs 11A-D, 12A-L; same as "Sb, septum base").
Distribution.Known only for the type locality (Fig 58).