New record for the genus Platymessa Mello-Leitão, 1941 in Colombia, with the description of a new species (Opiliones, Cosmetidae)

• Main Authors: Conchita A. Pinzón-M., Victor R. Townsend, Jr., Neis Martínez-H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Pensoft Publishers 2017-04-01
• Series: ZooKeys
• Online Access: http://zookeys.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=11371

The genus Platymessa Mello-Leitão, 1941 is represented by two species in the Andes of Colombia: P. h-inscriptum Mello-Leitão, 1941 and P. ectroxantha Mello-Leitão, 1941. Platymessa victoriae Pinzón-M. & Townsend, sp. n. is described on the basis of somatic morphological characters and the structure of the penis. The placement of this new species in the genus Platymessa is based upon multiple characters including the outline of dorsal scutum, the presence of a blunt spine on coxa IV, having short and strong legs with femora III and IV having five longitudinal rows of small tubercles, the shape of the basitarsomeres of male leg I, the distribution and relative sizes of the marginal setae on the ventral plate of the penis, and the morphology of the chelicerae and cheliceral sockets. In contrast to other members of the genus, P. victoriae has a pair of triangular tubercles on scutal area III, lacks paired paramedian tubercles on scutal area V, and does not have a ladder mask color pattern on the dorsal scutum. The description of this species expands the distribution of the genus to north of the Oriental Cordillera in the Cesar Department of Colombia.