Tasmanocambala tasmanica, Mesibov, Robert, 2018

Mesibov, Robert, 2018, Cambaloid millipedes of Tasmania, Australia, with remarks on family-level classification and descriptions of two new genera and four new species (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida), ZooKeys 827, pp. 1-17 : 1

Tasmanocambala tasmanica sp. n. Figs 1C, E; 2B, E

Holotype.

Male, Mt Gnomon, Tasmania, -41.1777, 146.0289 ± 25 m, 290 m a.s.l., 16 April 2016, R. Mesibov, QVMAG QVM:2018:23:0116.

Paratypes.

In QVMAG: 2 males, 4 females, details as for holotype, QVM:23:54461; 1 male, same locality and collector, -41.1739, 146.0344 ± 100 m, 14 February 1996, QVM:2017:23:0057; 3 males, 3 females, same locality and collector, -41.1775, 146.0285 ± 25 m, 300 m a.s.l., 5 February 2017, QVM:2017:23:0091.

Other material.

53 males, 47 females from 42 sites other than the type locality, in QVMAG; see Supplement 1 for details.

Name.

This species appears to be endemic to Tasmania.

Diagnosis.

Distinguished from T. greeni n. sp. and T. taylori n. sp. by the annular striae on the prozonite and by the larger number of setae in the apical comb on the anterior gonopod telopodite.

Description.

As for the genus, with the following details: in life, legs distinctly red-coloured in life (colour fades in alcohol) and strongly contrasting light-coloured annular band at rear of metazonite; male/female to 52+1/56+1 rings, 2.5/2.9 mm in midbody diameter. Trunk rings with variable number of annular striae on prozonite anterior to suture, most obvious ventrally (Fig. 2B). Anterior gonopod coxa (Figs 1E, 2E) with broad tip, usually wider than in T. greeni n. sp., usually shorter than telopodite; setal comb behind apical tab extending full width of telopodite tip and with 7-10 setae; tab sometimes with small finger-like projection laterally.

Distribution.

East of Tyler’s Line ( Mesibov 1994) in the Northwest, but apparently absent from the northeast of the main island and from islands in Bass Strait (Fig. 5B). The polydesmidan Tasmanodesmus hardyi Chamberlin, 1920 is similarly distributed ( Mesibov 2004).

Remarks.

Tasmanodesmus tasmanica n. sp. is the largest cambalid species in Tasmania and could be confused at first glance with the similar-sized iulomorphid Equestrigonus tasmaniensis Mesibov, 2017. The two spirostreptidans have not yet been found to co-occur, but their ranges may overlap in wet forest south of Wynyard and near Blessington.

Tasmanodesmus tasmanica sp. n. is very abundant in the Dial Range south of Penguin (i.e., around the type locality), where it can readily be found in and under damp leaf litter in wet eucalypt forest at any time of year.