Alogolykinae Hoffman, 1963

Golovatch, Sergei I., Aswathy, Mathilakath Dasan, Bhagirathan, Usha & Sudhikumar, Ambalaparambil Vasu, 2021, Review of the millipede tribe Polydrepanini, with the description of a new species from Kerala state, southern India (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Paradoxosomatidae, Alogolykinae), Zootaxa 5068 (4), pp. 485-516 : 487-488

Subfamily Alogolykinae Hoffman, 1963

Diagnostic remarks. According to Likhitrakarn et al. (2013), the subfamily Alogolykinae seems best characterized by the absence of a clear-cut division of the solenophore or solenophore-like structure near/around the solenomere into a membranous lamina medialis or a similarly membranous lamina lateralis, or both. In Polydrepanini , this is sometimes coupled with a twisted, helicoid course of the seminal groove. In addition, the gonofemorite in Alogolykinae is often nearly lacking to very strongly abbreviated, while numerous species show adenostyles on male femora 1 and/or 2. The latter two traits are characteristic of some species of the subfamily Australiosomatinae Brölemann, 1916 as well, and are occasionally present also in the subfamily Paradoxosomatinae Daday, 1889 , but in such cases the solenophore branch or branches remain free and never fully sheathe a primitively long, strong and rod-like solenomere.

The attempt by Sankaran and Sebastian (2018) to denominate some membranous structures of the solenophore in their new species of Polydrepanum Carl, 1932 as the homologue to a lamina lateralis can hardly be accepted, as discussed below.

Basically, the stronger/thicker the solenomere branch in both the order Polydesmida and the family Paradoxosomatidae , the less strong and intricate the support the solenophore renders to it tends to be. In contrast, the thinner/weaker the subflagelliform or filiform solenomere, the stronger, more intricate and solid the support of the solenophore tends to be.