Metaphire hilgendorfi (Michaelsen, 1892)

Blakemore, Robert J., Lee, Seunghan & Seo, Hong-Yul, 2015, Account of montane and insular speciation in some Korean megadriles (Annelida: Oligochaeta), Journal of Species Research 4 (1), pp. 1-22 : 4

4. Metaphire hilgendorfi / Amynthas tokioensis species-complex s. Blakemore, 2003

Amynthas tokioensis (Beddard, 1892) confirmed from the type by Blakemore (2010: fig. 2) with full synonymy provided in Blakemore (2012f).

Perichaeta tokioënsis Beddard, 1892b: 762 . [Published December, 1892 according to Michaelsen, 1900: 272]. [From Japan (probably Tokyo as in “tokioensis”). Holotype in British Museum: BMNH: 1904.10.5.166 inspected by Sims & Easton, 1972: 181, 191 and reinspected and refigured by RJB when on loan to YNU in October, 2004 and again in NHM, London in June, 2013; the specimen was 65 mm long with 67 segments but looks like a posterior amputee as the last segment has setae and is blunt rather than tapering. It is brownygrey in preservative and the clitellum is darker. The specimen had been dissected by Beddard and was slightly damaged: spermathecae in 8 were removed, only one remained in the jar that I put in a calcium vial along with a detached diverticulum, also the glands from 7 rhs seemed to have been removed, as was 18 lhs prostate].

Distribution. Japan and Korea; also reported from North America [by Gates (1954: 231) and as Metaphire levis ( Goto & Hatai, 1899) by Easton (1981: 53), sometimes incorrectly as “ Metaphire levis (Horst, 1893) ”, and possibly as Amynthas vittatus ( Goto & Hatai, 1898) ].

Remarks. Full description in Blakemore (2003; 2010; 2012f).