Review of the Spirobolida on Madagascar, with descriptions of twelve new genera, including three genera of ' fire millipedes' (Diplopoda)
Wesener, Thomas
Enghoff, Henrik
Sierwald, Petra
ZooKeys
2009
2009-09-04
19
19
1
128
4T4NM
Wesener
Wesener & Enghoff & Sierwald
2009
[140,569,518,545]
Diplopoda
Pachybolidae
Riotintobolus
Animalia
Spirobolida
50
51
Arthropoda
species
mandenensis
sp. nov.
urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: 7C0503C7-C70F-4FA4-A9A8-4E9F049E5391
Materialexamined: 1 ♂, 16 ♀, 20 imm. Holotype:1 ♂ ( 36 mmlong, dissected), FMMC W040C, Province Toliara, Mandena, littoral forest on sand, 34 m, 24°57.260’ S, 46°59.499’ E, leg. T. Weseneret al., 02.VI.2007. Paratypes: 5 ♀, 5 imm., FMMC W039C, same data as holotype; 1 ♀, 2 imm., CAS W039C, same data as holotype; 1 ♀, 2 imm., ZMUC W39C, same data as holotype; 1 ♀, 2 imm., ZMH W39C, same data as holotype; 1 ♀, 2 imm., ZSM W039C, same data as holotype. Othermaterial examined: 7 ♀, 7 imm., W039C, same data as holotype, University Antananarivo.
Differentialdiagnosis:the size and special colour pattern are unique for Malagasy millipedes. The gonopods of this species are similar in some aspects to those of R. minutus sp. n.and R. anomalus sp. n., but the posterior gonopods are of a unique shape.
Description. Measurements: holotypewith 41 podous and 2 apodous rings, 36 mmlong, 3.1 mmwide. Females with 41–43 podous and 0–2 apodous body rings, 37–43 mmlong, 4.2–4.4 mmwide. Colorationblack, dorsally with an extraordinary wide, light brown stripe ( Fig. 24A). Posterior half of collum dorsally black ( Fig. 26A). Head, legs and antennae light brown. Eyeswith 16–20 almost fused ocelli arranged in 4 or 5 rows ( Figs 26A, C). Antennaeprotruding back to body ring 2 ( Fig. 26A). Legswithout tarsal pads. Male legs reach 0.7 times, female legs 0.6 times body diameter. Preanal processsharp-edged, straight, protruding above anal valves ( Fig. 26B). Anal valves small, between anterior part and lips with a deep groove, margin towards groove sharpedged ( Fig. 26B). Anterior gonopodsternite basally wide, apically elevated into a lobe with a triangular, well-rounded tip ( Fig. 26I). Sternite tip almost as high as mesal process of coxite; latter relatively slender, elongated, longer than sternite ( Fig. 26I). Telopodite on posterior side apically with a large triangular, retrorse process ( Fig. 26K). Process projecting above coxite and telopodite ( Fig. 26K). Posterior gonopodstelopodite laterally with a single, large, finger-shaped process ( Fig. 26J, x). Second small projection, where sperm canal is discharging, is located close to apex ( Fig. 26M, y). A large, bi-lobical membrane present apically. Membrane apically three times wider than basally ( Fig. 26L, z). A small, white, swollen area ( Fig. 26M) is also located basally of membrane. Intraspecificvariation:females exist in different size classes. The presence of apodous rings in front of the telson in mature specimens hint to the existence of postmaturity moults.
Distributionand ecology: this species was only collected in the littoral rainforest on sand of Mandena ( Fig. 25). Only 160 ha of this forest will remain after a large-scale mining project ( Vincelette et al. 2003). All specimens were collected directly on the root layer under a thin layer of leaf litter. Disturbed specimens often did not curl into a spiral but remained motionless and stiff like a stick even when picked up. Because of their black/light-brown colour pattern ( Fig. 24A), specimens of R. mandenensiswere quite difficult to detect against the background consisting of sand with some darker top soil inclusion. The giant pill-millipede species Sphaeromimus inexpectatus Wesener & Sierwald, 2005is also only known from a small area surrounding Mandena (Wesen- er and Sierwald 2005).
Etymology: mandenensis, adjective, refers to the only area where this species lives, the littoral forest of Mandena.
2608818276
2007-06-02
FMMC
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W040
36
16
Toliara
holotype
2608818272
2007-06-02
FMMC
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W039
10
5
Toliara
paratype
2608818297
[508,1081,730,756]
2007-06-02
CAS
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W039
3
1
Toliara
paratype
2608818232
2007-06-02
ZMUC
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W39
3
1
Toliara
paratype
2608818299
2007-06-02
ZMH
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W39
3
1
Toliara
paratype
2608818259
[337,917,800,827]
2007-06-02
ZSM
T. Wesener
34
-24.954334
Mandena
1
46.99165
Province
50
51
W039
3
1
Toliara
paratype