Pilosphaera yentoensis, Lee, Yen-Chen, Lue, Kuang-Yang & Wu, Wen-Lung, 2008

Lee, Yen-Chen, Lue, Kuang-Yang & Wu, Wen-Lung, 2008, Molecular evidence for a polyphyletic genus Japonia (Architaenioglossa: Cyclophoridae) and with the description of a new genus and two new species, Zootaxa 1792, pp. 22-38 : 31-34

Pilosphaera yentoensis new species

Type locality. Both holotype and paratypes were collected from Yen-To town near Nan-Xi River in Zhejiang province, China (28°18’32.7” N; 120°32’30” E). Gathered from grass slope under leaves.

Holotype. Shell length (= SL): 5.17 mm, shell width (= SW): 5.27 mm; Aperture length (= APL): 2.82 mm, Aperture width (= APW): 2.82 mm; NMNS 5635-001.

Paratype 1. SL: 5.27 mm, SW: 5.49 mm; APL: 3.10 mm, APW: 2.93 mm; NMNS 5635-002. Paratype 2. SL: 5.38 mm, SW: 5.63 mm; APL: 2.83 mm, APW: 2.83 mm; NMNS 5635-003. Paratype 3. SL: 4.38 mm, SW: 4.63 mm; APL: 2.38 mm, APW: 2.35 mm; NMNS 5635-004. Paratype 4. SL: 4.63mm (apex missing), SW: 5.33mm; APL: 2.50mm, APW: 2.68mm; ASIZ

MLSP104201301.

Etymology. The name honors the Yen-To Town, primary locality of this species.

Description. Shell ( Fig. 5 A–F) small, 5.17–5.27 mm in length and 5.27–5.49 mm in width. Shell turbinate and conical-globe shape, with moderately convex whorls 5–5.25 in number. Shell is festucine in color with reddish brown longitudinal stripes. Surface sculptured with several indistinct spiral cords, covered with festucine-coloured dull periostracum and regular periostracal lamellae, interval with irregular fine growth lines. There are three regular rows of periostracal hairs between the sutures on the penultimate whorl. There is no periostracal hair and the periostracum is polished under the peripheral line. The periostracum hairs are sometimes entirely lost, perhaps in old shells such as holotype. Umbilicus open, deep. The aperture is nearly circular. The peristome is interrupted, with reflected outer lip. The operculum is translucent ceratoid, a little concave center, multispiral type with very thin pellucid edge.

There is an orange red snout between two purplish gray tentacles on the head. Dark gray foot covered by two dark gray lobes which have pale colored edges. The lobes joined posteriorly and forming a pale colored groove. ( Fig. 7 A–B)

Remarks. The present species differs from its only known congener Pilosphaera zebra in dark gray soft body color ( Fig. 7 A–C) and in having fewer periostracal hairs ( Fig. 5 A–I, 8A–B). The latter species has 5–6 regular rows of periostracal hairs between the sutures on the penultimate whorl compared to three in the new species. The shell base of P. z e b r a has 6–7 rows of periostracal hairs, but these are not present on the new species ( Fig. 5 ). P. z e b r a also has 4–7 rows of tiny periostracal hairs immediately below the suture ( Fig. 8 B), which are not present in the new species. In COI gene data, the average distance between this new species and Pilosphaera zebra was = 0.160, which was closer to the average distance among cyclophorid species (0.198) than to within species comparisons (0.061).

Figures

FIGURE 5. Lateral, apex and basal view of Pilosphaera shells. A – C: Holotype of Pilosphaera yentoensis n. sp. NMNS 5635 - 001 (28 ° 18 ’ 32.7 ” N; 120 ° 32 ’ 30 ” E); D – F: Paratype of Pilosphaera yentoensis n. sp. NMNS 5635 - 002 (28 ° 18 ’ 32.7 ” N; 120 ° 32 ’ 30 ” E); H – J: Pilosphaera zebra from Wu-Lai, Taipei, Taiwan (24 ° 50 ’ 57.1 ” N; 121 ° 34 ’ 11.5 ” E). Scale bar = 1 mm.

FIGURE 7. Living specimens of Pilosphaera and Japonia species A – B: P. yentoensis n. sp. from Yen-To town near Nan-Xi river in Zhejiang province, China (28 ° 18 ’ 32.7 ” N; 120 ° 32 ’ 30 ” E); C: P. zebra from Nei-Hu, Taipei, Taiwan (25 ° 5 ’ 19.1 ” N; 121 ° 37 ’ 42.4 ” E); D: J. boonkioensis n. sp. NMNS 5636 - 001 from Fen-chi-hu in Jia-i County, central Taiwan (23 ° 29 ’ 31.1 ” N; 120 ° 41 ’ 59.4 ” E).

FIGURE 8. Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (FEI Quanta 200) photographs of periostracum hairs on Pilosphaera and Japonia shells. A: Paratype of Pilosphaera yentoensis n. sp. NMNS 5635 - 002 (28 ° 18 ’ 32.7 ” N; 120 ° 32 ’ 30 ” E); B: Pilosphaera zebra from Nei-Hu, Taipei, Taiwan (25 ° 5 ’ 19.1 ” N; 121 ° 37 ’ 42.4 ” E); C: Holotype of Japonia boonkioensis n. sp.; D: Japonia formosana from in Sin-Xu, Taiwan (24 ° 34 ’ 57.1 ” N; 120 ° 52 ’ 30.0 ” E).