Intricatonura, Smolis & Bernard, 2017

Smolis, Adrian & Bernard, Ernest C., 2017, Intricatonura fjellbergi, a new peculiar genus and species of Neanurini (Collembola: Neanuridae: Neanurinae) from Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Florida Entomologist 100 (4), pp. 725-730 : 727-728

Intricatonura gen. nov.

Type species: Intricatonura fjellbergi sp. nov.

Diagnosis. Blue hypodermic pigment present on the body. Tubercles on body well developed. Three pigmented eyes on each side of head. Mouth parts reduced, maxilla styliform, mandible thin, triden- tate. Labral chaetotaxy 2/2, 2. Chaetotaxy of labium reduced with 2 basal, 2 distal, and 2 lateral setae, and without papillae x. Eight tubercles on head, with Di fused to De, and DL fused to (L + So). Chaetotaxy of tubercles Oc and (Di + De) reduced on head, with only 6 setae (Ocm, Di1 and De2) and setae Oca, Ocp, Di2 and De2 absent. Tubercle DL of Th. II – III divided into 2 components. Chaetotaxy of tubercles Di strongly reduced on Th. II – III and Abd. I– IV, with seta Di1 only. Tubercle Di of Abd. I– IV rectangle-shaped. Tubercles De on Abd. I– IV not developed. Chaetotaxy of groups De strongly reduced on Abd. I– IV, without ordinary setae. Abd. IV and V with 6 and 2 tubercles, respectively. Tubercles (Di + De + DL) on abd. V separate along midline. Cryptopygy present as Abd. VI nearly invisible from dorsal side. Tibiotarsal chaetotaxy 18, 18, 17. Claw untoothed.

The new genus constitutes a monophyletic group within Neanurini , with the following autapomorphies: reduction of labial chaetotaxy with 6 setae only, division of DL-tubercles on 2nd and 3rd thoracic tergites, presence of only 1 Di-seta on each side of Th. II – III and Abd. I– IV, rectangular and transverse shape of Di-tubercles on Abd. I– IV, and absence of tubercles and ordinary De setae on Abd. I– IV.

Some of above mentioned features, i.e., division of DL-tubercles on Th. II – III and rectangular shape of Di-tubercles on Abd. I– IV are un- known in other members of the subfamily. Intricatonura gen. n. resembles most closely Vietnura Deharveng & Bedos, 2000 , the genus created for V. caerulea from Vietnam ( Deharveng & Bedos,2000). Both genera share the fusion of all lateral tubercles on the head into a single mass, fusion of tubercles Di and De on head, reduction of the chaetotaxy of tubercles Di, De and Oc on the head, and presence of cryptopygy. Besides the apomorphies outlined above, they differ additionally in the number of eyes (in Vietnura 2, in Intricatonura gen. nov. 3), the length of dorsal macrosetae (in Vietnura long, at least 3 times longer than length of tubercles; in Intricatonura gen. nov. notably short, 2 or 3 times shorter than length of tubercles), the arrangement of tubercles in the central area of the head (in Vietnura tubercles Af and Oc fused, in Intricatonura gen. nov. separate), the number of tubercles on the penultimate abdominal tergum (in Vietnura 3 tubercles: 2 (De + DL) and (Di + Di), in Intricatonura gen. nov. 2 tubercles: 2 (Di + De + DL)) and the presence of seta M on the tibiotarsi (in Vietnura present, in Intricatonura gen. nov. absent).

Etymology. The name of the new genus is derived from the Latin combining form intricat- (entangled), referring to its intricate combination of characters and the common root – nura used for many neanurid genera.

Revised key to Neanurini genera (modified from Mayvan et al. 2015)

In order to assign the new genus within the tribe Neanurini , we modified the key published by Mayvan et al. (2015) as follows:

1. — Head with complete fusion of lateral tubercles DL, L and So............................................................... 2

1’. — Head with separation or incomplete fusion of lateral tubercles DL, L and So (e.g., only tubercles DL and L fused)................... 4

2. (1) Abdomen IV with tubercles Di fused............................ Monobella Cassagnau (partim: Monobella cassagnaui Deharveng )

2’. — Abdomen IV with tubercles separate.................................................................................. 3

3. (2) Head with fusion of tubercles Af and Oc; Abdomen V with 3 tubercles: (Di + Di) and 2 (De + DL).......... Vietnura Deharveng & Bedos

3’. — Head with separation of tubercles Af and Oc; Abdomen V with 2 tubercles: 2 (Di + De + DL).................. Intricatonura gen. nov.