Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus, Edgecombe & Akkari & Netherlands & Preez, 2020

Edgecombe, Gregory D., Akkari, Nesrine, Netherlands, Edward C. & Preez, Gerhard Du, 2020, A troglobitic species of the centipede Cryptops (Chilopoda, Scolopendromorpha) from northwestern Botswana, ZooKeys 977, pp. 25-40 : 25

Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov. Figs 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6

Material.

Holotype. NHMW 10149 (Figs 1 - 2 ), Paradise Road Balcony, Diviner’s Cave, Koanaka Hills, 20°8'32.20"S, 21°12'36.60"E, leg. 25.xi.2012, G. Du Preez (see “Habitat”).

Paratypes. All leg. G. Du Preez. NHMW 10150, Diviner’s Cave, leg. 27.iv.2011; NHMW 10151, 'Calcite Baboon Chamber’, Diviner’s Cave, leg. 27.iv.2011; NHMW 10152, 'Pirates Cove’, Dimapo Cave (Gcwihaba Hills), leg. 1.v.2013.

Diagnosis.

Cephalic plate contacts T1 without consistent overlap by either. Cephalic plate with paramedian sutures on posterior half and short anterolateral sutures. T1 with shallow V-shaped anterior transverse suture, short median suture and diverging curved, diagonal sutures. Paramedian sutures complete from T2. Pretarsal accessory spines elongate, more than half length of claw. Saw teeth on ultimate leg 1 + 6-8 + 3-4.

Description.

The following is based on the holotype unless indicated otherwise, with variation in paratypes indicated in square parentheses.

Length (anterior margin of cephalic plate to posterior margin of telson) 28.5 mm [23.0-31.7 mm].

Cephalic plate orange; TT1-2, forcipular segment and basal part of antenna pale orange, other tergites, sternites and legs more yellow.

Paramedian sutures on posterior half of cephalic plate gently sinuous and converging along most of their length, parallel on their anterior part. Anterolateral sutures short, straight. Fine, slender setae relatively sparse on cephalic plate and tergites, most arranged with bilateral symmetry.

Antenna of 17 articles, extending back to anterior part of T4 [posterior half of T3]. Basal 4-4.5 articles scattered with moderately long, pigmented setae; articles 5-10 with longer setae in a whorl around basal part of article, with short, dense setae prevalent; articles 11-17 densely covered with short setae.

Clypeal setae arranged as 2 (+2 small) + 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 + 2 and transverse band of 8 prelabral setae in holotype; paratypes include 2 (+2 small) + 1 + 2 + 2 + 2.

Coxosternal margin biconvex, bearing a short marginal seta and variably a longer submarginal seta on each side. Coxosternum with relatively sparse, symmetrically arranged short setae, more pervasively scattered with minute setae. Tibia but not femur complete on outer side of forcipule.

Both rami of anterior transverse suture on T1 nearly straight, converging to a point medially from which a short median suture extends posteriorly, then branches into divergent sutures with gentle outward convexity. Paramedian sutures complete from TT2-20; sutures on T2 with posterior half more strongly divergent posteriorly than anterior half, more or less bell-shaped, from T3 posteriorly progressively more parallel. Oblique sutures on TT2-3[4]. Lateral crescentic sulci on TT3-19.

Spiracles elongate oval in outline.

Sternites 2-19 with cruciform sulci. Endosternite on anterior segments without trigonal sutures.

Prefemur, femur and tibia on locomotory legs with strongly pigmented setae, many of those of tibia finer than on more proximal articles; tarsus with more slender, paler setae. Tarsal articulations distinct, mostly with negligible flexure on legs 1-18, flexed on legs 19-21 [all tarsi flexed in NHMW 10150]. Pretarsi of legs 1-20 with pair of long accessory spines, consistently more than half length of claw, up to 75% length of claw on some legs; accessory spines lacking on ultimate leg.

Tergite of ultimate leg-bearing segment with two straight sectors on posterior margin that converge medially to a blunt angle; shallow depression posteriorly. Sternite of ultimate leg-bearing segment with lateral margins gently convex outwards, posterior margin nearly straight or gently convex. Coxopleural pore field elongate oval, occupying anterior 75% of coxopleuron, pore-free margin with up to five fairly robust setae arranged as an anterior pair and a posterior row of three. All specimens with more than 30 coxal pores in area not concealed by sternite, ca 60 in highest count, a nearly complete pore field; pores variable in size; two or three short, robust setae and a few more tiny setae within pore field.

Ultimate leg of paratype (body length 25.8 mm) with prefemur 1.4 mm, femur 1.5 mm, tibia 0.9 mm, tarsus 1 0.5 mm, tarsus 2 0.65 mm, pretarsus 0.2 mm. Ultimate leg with distinctly densest and most robust, lanceolate setae on ventromedial parts of prefemur and femur, these articles sparsely setose dorsally. Saw teeth 1 + 6-7[8] + 3-4.

Etymology.

Legaga, Tswana for “cave”.

Figures

Figure 1. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., holotype (NHMW 10149) A habitus, dorsal view B head and T 1, dorsal view C head and segment 1, ventral view D detail of head, ventral view E segments 2 - 4, lateral view, showing spiracle on segment 3 F legs 9 - 10, lateral view.

Figure 2. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., holotype (NHMW 10149). A-C segments 19 - 21, dorsal, ventral and posterolateral views, respectively D ultimate leg-bearing segment, ventrolateral view.

Figure 3. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., paratype NHMW 10152 A head and segment 1, dorsal view B ultimate leg-bearing segment, posterolateral view, showing coxopleural pore field C distal articles of ultimate leg, showing femoral, tibial and tarsal saw teeth.

Figure 4. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., paratype NHMW 10150 A, B head and segment 1, dorsal and ventral views C forcipular coxosternal margin, ventral view D segments 19 - 21, ventral view E distal articles of ultimate leg, showing femoral, tibial and tarsal saw teeth.

Figure 5. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., paratype NHMW 10151 A habitus, dorsal view B, C head and segment 1, dorsal and ventral views D detail of head (clypeus, first maxilla and forcipule), ventral view E leg-bearing segments 1 and 2, dorsal view F cruciform sulci on sternites.

Figure 6. Cryptops (Cryptops) legagus sp. nov., paratype NHMW 10151 A segments 20 - 21, dorsal view B segments 18 - 21, ventrolateral view C, D distal articles of ultimate leg and detail of tibia, tarsus and pretarsus, ventral views, showing saw teeth.