Iulidesmus Silvestri, 1895

Romero-Rincon, Juan & Golovatch, Sergei I., 2024, The millipede genus Iulidesmus Silvestri, 1895 in Colombia (Polydesmida, Paradoxosomatidae, Catharosomatini), Zootaxa 5415 (1), pp. 56-76 : 58

Genus Iulidesmus Silvestri, 1895

Iulidesmus : Silvestri, 1895, Ann. Mus. Civ. Stor. Nat. Genova, 34: 773. Type species: Iulidesmus typicus Silvestri, 1895 , by monotypy.

Mestosoma : Silvestri, 1897, Boll. Mus. Torino, 12 (283): 3. Type species: Strongylosoma salvadorii Silvestri, 1895 , by original designation; synonymized by Hoffman (2012).

Julidesmus [sic]: Chamberlin, 1957, Lunds Univ. Ǻrsskr., NF 2, 53 (8): 11.

Neactoma [sic]: González-Sponga, 2004, Bol. Acad. Cien. Fís., Mat. y Nat., 64 (3–4), 9–16.

Diagnosis: A very large genus of Catharosomatini with 20 body rings, poorly developed paraterga, distinct from the other genera by a semi- to fully circular gonopodal telopodite. Coxite long and subcylindrical, oriented along the main axis, with or without a dorsal bulge and with a usual mesal cannula, either tubiform or clearly flattened. Telopodite longer than coxite, typically complex and strongly curved mesad, thus never being coaxial with coxite. Prefemorite as usual, not hypertrophied, densely setose and clearly set off from femorite by an oblique cingulum. Femorite usually slender and simple, mostly untwisted, but sometimes with evidence of torsion, often more or less distinctly constricted near midway due to a mesobasal bulge, only rather rarely with one or two mesal outgrowths or dilatations, apically more or less clearly delimited from acropodite by a distofemoral cingulum or mesal sulcus. Postfemorite especially complex, clearly curved and directed mesad, split just beyond distofemoral sulcus into a long flagelliform solenomere, at least its sigmoid basal part, often also its tip, being exposed, and a prominent, lamellar and mostly very complex acropodite. An additional postfemoral sulcus or cingulum often present to delimit a shorter postfemorite proper, this with or without a rounded, more or less cap-shaped, apical lobe and a large mesobasal lamella, from a long and elaborate solenophore. The latter highly variable in shape, often with outhgrowths, broadly rounded to acuminate at tip, but usually with a larger lamina lateralis and a smaller lamina medialis, both readily discernible and both sheathing much or most of, or even entire remaining solenomere.

Coloration sometimes peculiar, colour patterns often vivid even in materal preserved for decades. Male sternal modifications usually, ventral brushes on tibiae and/or tarsi, as well as adenostyles sometimes present.