Scotinella Banks 1911

Genus Scotinella Banks

Scotinella Banks, 1911. Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Philad. 63: 442.

Scotinella is a small genus with approximately 15 nominal species, but generic revision could produce 35 or more species. They are small spiders, 1.75-3.10 mm long, with relatively ant-like appearance; cephalothorax ovoid, yellow-brown to pale gray, with black striae, highest at anterior end of dorsal groove, and surfaces bear minute pits; dorsal groove almost absent to shallow; eyes prominent and uniform in size, arranged in two transverse rows, AE straight with PE slightly procurved, PE> AE; chelicerae short and robust, often mottled black, promargin bears two or three minute teeth, similar to retromargin; maxillae as wide as long, convex along lateral margins. Legs yellow-orange to dark brown, slender with thin claw tufts and scopulae, femur I without dorsal spines but with two prolaterals, tibia I with five or six pairs of long overlapping ventral spines, metatarsus I with four pairs of long overlapping ventral setae, trochanter IV bears no ventral notch; abdomen ovoid, sometimes with pale chevrons, anterior end without cluster of setae, male abdomen with shiny dorsal scutum and with epigastric scutum; femur of female pedipalp with hooked structure ventrally, tibia longer than wide with a small ventral and a strong retrolateral apophysis; rounded tegulum without apophysis; embolus short, usually expanded at base and slender distally, emanating at distal end of tegulum; epigynum with elongated plate with prominent paired atrial depressions in anterior one half; copulatory tubes short to long, slender, arched laterad; spermathecae subglobular and set posterolateral to the copulatory openings.

[table omitted]

Scotinella is best distinguished from its close allies by the unconstricted lateral margins of maxillae, AE row straight or nearly so, and presence of four ventral spines in metatarsus I.