Hyleoglomeris eusulcata, Golovatch & Geoffroy & Mauriès, 2006

Golovatch, Sergei I., Geoffroy, Jean-Jacques & Mauriès, Jean-Paul, 2006, Review of the millipede genus Hyleoglomeris Verhoeff, 1910 (Diplopoda, Glomerida, Glomeridae), with descriptions of new species from caves in Southeast Asia, Zoosystema 28 (4), pp. 887-915 : 901-902

Hyleoglomeris eusulcata n. sp.

( Fig. 8 )

TYPE MATERIAL. — China. Guizhou Province, Libo County, La Tai Dong Cave , 6.III.1995, leg. P. Trontelj, holotype ♂ ( MNHN CC156 ) ; paratypes 2 ♂♂, 2 ♀♀ ( MNHN CC156 ) ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 3 juvs ( OB BF UL) ; 1 ♂, 1 ♀ ( ZMUM) .

ETYMOLOGY. — To emphasize the conspicuous lateral sulcus present on the thoracic shield.

DIAGNOSIS. — Differs from congeners by the single stria on the collum, combined with a peculiar sulcus on the thoracic shield.

DESCRIPTION

Length of adults 7.0-8.0 (♂) or 7.0-9.0 mm (♀), width 3.0- 3.8 mm (♂, ♀). Holotype 8.0 mm long and 3.1 mm wide.

Coloration entirely pallid, unpigmented.

Antennomere 6 about 2.3-2.4 times longer than wide, antennomere 7 only slightly shorter than 2nd; 2or 3 barely visible ocelli, unpigmented;Tömösváry’s organ transverse-oval, about twice as wide as long.

Body teguments softer than usual. Collum with one transverse stria.

Thoracic shield with a rather small hyposchism not reaching the caudal tergal contour ( Fig. 8A ); 8 or 9 transverse striae, of which 5 or 7 start above the schism, on an elevation just in front of a conspicuous, slightly curved, midway lateral sulcus (s) delimiting a slight but evident impression in posterolateral portion of the shield; usually 6 striae (never the first and last though) cross the dorsum.

Male pygidium virtually not sinuate medially at caudal margin.

Male leg 17 ( Fig. 8B ) with a rather low, rounded, outer coxal lobe of irregular shape; telopodite 4- segmented.

Male leg 18 ( Fig.8C ) with a more or less narrowly ogival syncoxital notch; telopodite 4-segmented.

Telopods ( Fig. 8D, E ) with a rather small, roundly subtrapeziform syncoxital lobe flanked by two setose horns crowned with an apical setoid. Prefemur micropapillate laterally. Caudomedial outgrowth of tibia with a micropapillate tubercle at base. Tarsus narrowly rounded apically.

REMARKS

This new species differs markedly from congeners by having only a single stria crossing the collum, as well as in having a conspicuous sulcus above the schism, delimiting a slight but evident lateral impression (shown stippled in Figure 8A ). A similar sulcus is only observed in H. sulcostriata n. sp., from Laos (see below). Neither of these traits seems troglomorphic, but the softer teguments, and the complete loss of pigmentation and most of the ocelli, are definitely troglomorphic features.Most likely we face a disjunct troglobitic species in this case.

In general, Guizhou is very rich in karst caves that contain numerous troglobitic arthropods and other animals ( Chen et al. 2001).

Figures

FIG. 8. — Hyleoglomeris eusulcata n. sp., ♂ paratype: A, lateral side of thoracic shield; B, leg 17; C, leg 18; D, telopod, front view; E, distal part of telopod, caudal view. Abbreviation: s, sulcus. Scale bar: A, drawn not to scale; B-E, 0.4 mm.