Pseudotremia wallaceae, Lewis, Julian J., 2005

Lewis, Julian J., 2005, Cumberland Plateau (Diplopoda: Chordeumatida: Cleidogonidae), Zootaxa 1080, pp. 17-31 : 28

Pseudotremia wallaceae new species

Figs. 20–23

Material examined: Tennessee: Pickett Co., Cordell Hull State Park, Frog Cave, holotype male, 2 paratype males, paratype female, 3 juveniles, J. Lewis, S. Lewis, H. Garland, 12 September 2003; Bunkum Cave, 3 paratype males, 6 females, J. Lewis, S. Lewis, H. Garland, 12 September 2003.

Diagnosis: Within the Eburnea Group of Shear (1972), P. w a l l a c e a e most closely resembles P. a c h e ro n Shear (Warren and Van Buren counties, Tennessee) and P. garlandae n.sp. (Fentress County), from which P. w a l l a c e a e can be separated by the pigmented body, the presence of a spine on the median angiocoxite and a syncolpocoxite process distally entire, not bifurcate.

Description of male: Longest approximately 26mm (coiled), width increasing from 1.2mm (collum) to 2.3mm (7th segment); body light to medium brown with whitish infusion, metaterga uniform brown with about 20 darker, slightly elongated tubercles, dorsal midline stripe light brown, purplish infusion in pregonopodal segments; sterna and legs pale brown. Eyes with 16–17 clear, irregularly shaped, unpigmented ocelli within subtriangular purple ocellaria. Antenna about 4.2mm long, slender, 3rd segment about 1.4mm long. Segmental paranota mildly produced, becoming indistinct from lateral striae about segment 22–24. Lateral striae about 11–13.

Gonopods with syncolpocoxites mitten­shaped, separated by U­shaped cleft, process class I ( Shear 1972, p. 167), arises from notch between syncolpocoxites, curving dorsad between t angiocoxites, in anterior view broadened distally, tapering to single point best seen in lateral aspect. Median angiocoxite with single small mesial spine midlength. Lateral angiocoxite separated from median by deep, U­shaped cleft, sigmoidally curved, divided, mesial branch shorter, slightly sigmoid, extending obliquely mesiad in anterior view. Leg 9 with distal 3 segments well formed and apparently functional, single claw present.

Female: Approximately 24mm (coiled), non­sexual characters similar to male, ocelli 14–15. Cyphopod valves elongate in dorsal aspect, mesal valve about 1.5X length lateral valve.

Etymology: This species is named in honor of Linda Wallace­Gray, philanthropist and benefactor of The Nature Conservancys biological inventory of caves of the Cumberland Plateau.

Vernacular name: Wallace’s cave milliped.

Habitat and Range: Frog and Bunkum caves essentially comprise a single locality, since the entrances are less than 50 meters apart. Bunkum Cave was described by Barr (1961) as having one of the largest and most scenic entrances in Tennessee, with a main stream passage 750 feet (ca. 250 meters) in length. Pseudotremia wallaceae was found in Frog and Bunkum caves on riparian mud banks. Although P. wallaceae has been collected only from caves, in contrast to the unpigmented troglobite P. acheron , it is pigmented and may be troglophilic.

Figures

FIGURES 16 – 23. Pseudotremia roebuckorum, n. sp., Fallen Entrance Cave, Fentress Co., Tennessee: (16) anterior gonopods, anterior aspect, (17) anterior gonopods, lateral aspect, (18) leg 9, (19) cyphopod. Pseudotremia wallaceae, n. sp., Frog Cave, Pickett Co., Tennessee: (20) anterior gonopods, anterior aspect, (21) anterior gonopods, lateral aspect, (22) leg 9, (23) cyphopod.