Scolopocryptops guacharensis Manfredi, 1957

Schileyko, Arkady A., 2014, A contribution to the centipede fauna of Venezuela (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha), Zootaxa 3821 (1), pp. 151-192 : 156-159

Scolopocryptops guacharensis Manfredi, 1957

Figs 8–11

Scolopocryptops ferrugineus guacharensis Manfredi, 1957: 176 ; Scolopocryptops guacharensis: Chagas, 2003: 65 .

Locus typicus: Venezuela, Monagas State, Cueva del Güácharo.

Material. Venezuela, [Monagas State, Municipio Caripe], [loc.2], Cueva del Guacero [=Güácharo], 0 8.1978, leg MGP, 1 ad, N 7167. 1 specimen in all.

Material of Scolopocryptops ferrugineus (L., 1767) studied for comparison. Brazil, Mato Grosso, Chapada dos Guimaraes, 3 subad, NN 7175, 7176. Dominican Republic: Prov. La Vega, 2 spec, NN 6761, 6762; Prov. Barahona, 1 spec, 6763. Jamaica: S Cockpit Country, 1 spec, N 6765; 1 juv, N 6961. Peru: Region Ukayali, Coronel Portillo Province, 60 km E of Pucalpa: 1 ad, N 6690; 1 ad + 2 juv, N 6691; 2 ad, N 6692; Peru, Region Junin, Chanchamayo Province, la Merced, 1 spec, N 7366 [old number 1220]. Cuba: Pinar del Rio, 2 spec, N 6345; Guantanamo, 1 spec, N 7054. West Africa, Guinea, Nimba, 1 spec, N 7321.

Description of adult N 7167. Length of body 42–43 mm. Color in ethanol: entire animal uniformly reddishbrown with antenna and legs somewhat lighter. The body practically without setae; sternites and legs somewhat more setose.

Antennae: distal articles missing in both antenna. 3 basal articles with a few long setae dorsally, 2 basal articles with more numerous long setae ventrally. Subsequent articles densely pilose. All antennal articles cylindrical.

Cephalic plate as long as wide, posteriorly rounded ( Fig. 8 ) and without sutures. Ventral surface of clypeus coarsely punctate with a minute seta disposed in each punctum.

Second maxillae: article 2 of telopodite distally with a well-developed dorsal spur. Pretarsus without accessory spines.

Forcipular segment ( Fig. 9 ): ventral surface of coxosternite and forcipules coarsely punctate; a minute seta is in each punctum. Coxosternite with transverse sutures at left and right side; medial ends of these sutures branching but not connecting to each other. Short chitin-lines well-developed. Anterior margin of a coxosternite strongly sclerotised (dark brown or practically black in color), convex (vs. concave in melanostoma ) and forming a very obtuse angle. This margin divided into two parts by a median diastema, each part with 1 median and 1 lateral tooth. Both parts with a common basal suture ( Fig. 9 ); 4(5)+4(5) setae are disposed in a straight line just below this suture. Trochanteroprefemur with well-developed conical process which is slightly curved inwards/mediad and with a thin basal suture. Tarsungula normal, their interior surface with three well-developed parallel longitudinal ridges.

Tergites: tergite 1 with a curved anterior transverse suture; anterior margin of tergite 1 covered by the cephalic plate ( Fig. 8 ), which covers anterior transverse suture as well. Tergites 5–7 with very short traces of paramedian sutures at posterior margin, tergites 8–20 with complete paramedian sutures (these sutures are better developed on the middbody tergites); tergites (21)22–23 without paramedian sutures. All tergites without lateral longitudinal sutures and median keel. Tergites 8–9 with poorly defined and tergites 10–21 with normal margination; tergites 22–23 without margination. Tergite 23 long, half as wide as tergite 22; this tergite not narrowed posteriorly, its posterior margin convex.

Sternites 2–4(5) rectangular, the following sternites trapeziform. Sternite 1 with thin paired anterior sutures which diverge posteriorly and half as long as sternite. Sternites 1–21(22) anteriorly with some thin branching transverse sutures, which form an anastomosing pattern much better developed in the anterior body half. Ultimate sternite narrowed towards straight posterior margin.

Legs: practically all legs are detached, 1–21 with undivided tarsi. Legs 1–19 with lateral and ventral tibial spurs (ventral spur is always longer, than lateral one) and one tarsal spur ( Fig. 10 ). Leg 20 with ventral tibial and tarsal spurs, leg 21 with tarsal spur only and leg 22 without any spur ( Fig. 11 ). All legs with a pair of welldeveloped accessory spines.

Coxopleuron with dense small and very small coxal pores, only tip of conical сoxopleural process and very narrow area bordering the ultimate tergite poreless. Tips of both сoxopleural processes are missing; coxopleural surface without setae. Posterior margin of ultimate pleuron forming a sharp angle, its tip is rounded; an additional dark spine at dorsal side of this angle.

Ultimate legs missing.

Range. This species is Venezuelan endemic, occurring Cueva [=cave] del Güácharo of El Güácharo National Park in Monagas State, Municipio Caripe.

Discussion. The only specimen is not well preserved, with practically all legs detached and some soft structures damaged or missing.

Chagas (2003) re-describing S. guacharensis wrote (p. 66), that it “is easily set apart from the related S. ferrugineus by characters of dental [=tooth] plate, the [tergal] paramedian sutures, length [and pilosity] of the last [=ultimate] leg and tibial spurs of the leg”. However, according my observations the main difference between S. guacharensis and S. ferrugineus is a shape of tooth margin (=fused tooth-plates) of forcipular segment (I can say nothing about the comparative length of ultimate legs, as described above N 7167 missed them). As a result of study of 20 specimens of S. ferrugineus deposited in collection of ZMMU (see “Additional material”) I can state, that all other characters noted above vary intraspecifically in S. ferrugineus and cannot be used as diagnostic for S. guacharensis . Also I have not seen any degree of depigmentation (see Chagas, 2003: 67) in N 7167.

It should be noted as well, that such conditions as the absence of lateral margination of the ultimate tergite is very rare in the Scolopendromorpha , being unique for a few species of Scolopocryptopinae ( Dinocryptops miersii (Newport, 1845) , Scolopocryptops melanostoma , S. ferrugineus and S. guacharensis ). In these forms tergite 23 is bordered laterally only by sutures having no real lateral margination.

Figures

FIGURES 6 – 9. Scolopocryptops melanostoma Newport, 1845 (adult N 7172) 6 segment 23 and prefemora of ultimate legs, ventral view 7 segment 23 and ultimate legs, lateral view; Scolopocryptops guacharensis Manfredi, 1957 (adult N 7167) 8 cephalic plate and segments 1 – 2, dorsal view 9 forcipular segment and segment 1, ventral view; (ust) — sternite of ultimate legbearing segment, (cx) — coxopleuron, (cxp) — coxopleural process, (pm) — posterior margin of pleuron of segment 23, (vsp) — ventral spinous process of ultimate prefemur, (dmsp) — dorso-medial spinous process of ultimate prefemur, (ts) — transverse sutures, (am) — anterior margin of forcipular coxosternite, (ltam) — lateral tooth of anterior margin of coxosternite, (bsam) — basal suture of anterior margin of coxosternite, (ptr) — process of forcipular trochanteroprefemur, (tg 1) — tergite 1.

FIGURES 10 – 13. Scolopocryptops guacharensis Manfredi, 1957 (adult N 7167) 10 leg of midbody segment, lateral view 11 leg 22, lateral view; Newportia longitarsis stechowi Verhoeff, 1938 12 adult N 7304: harpoon-like tip of spinous process of prefemur of ultimate leg, lateral view; Newportia ernsti ernsti Pocock, 1891 13 adult N 7079: cephalic plate and segment 1, dorsal view; (utl) — undivided tarsus of leg, (t) — tibia of leg, (vsp) — ventral spinous process of ultimate prefemur, (ht) — harpoon-like tip of spinous process, (ats) — anterior transverse suture.