Prionopetalum fasciatum, Attems, 1896

Henrik Enghoff, 2016, A mountain of millipedes IV: Species of Prionopetalum Attems, 1909, from the Udzungwa Mountains, Tanzania. With notes on “ P. ” fasciatum (Attems, 1896) and a revised species key (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida, Odontopygidae), European Journal of Taxonomy 215, pp. 1-23 : 13-14

The status of “Prionopetalum” fasciatum ( Attems, 1896)

Attems (1896) described Odontopyge fasciata from Zanzibar, but later (1914) transferred the species to Prionopetalum without further comment. Brolemann (1920) redescribed the species based on new material from Zanzibar and expressed doubts about the genus-level classification of it, suggesting that it might belong in a separate subgenus of Prionopetalum . Kraus (1960), however, accepted the inclusion of fasciata in Prionopetalum . In the most recent treatment of Prionopetalum VandenSpiegel & Pierrard (2009) discussed fasciata , noticing that it differs from other species of Prionopetalum in several characters: the limbus is almost straight, not serrate; there are no ventral tibial pads on male legs; and the proximal telomeral process (tpp) is a simple, rounded lobe. The latter authors reported further new material from Zanzibar as well as from Bagamoyo District, Vula Mountain, Pongwe, on the Tanzanian mainland.

After having examined several specimens from Zanzibar I can now offer a re-classification of this species: