Atelomastix culleni, Edward & Harvey, 2010

Edward, Karen L. & Harvey, Mark S., 2010, A review of the Australian millipede genus Atelomastix (Diplopoda: Spirostreptida: Iulomorphidae) 2371, Zootaxa 2371 (1), pp. 1-63 : 14-15

Atelomastix culleni , sp. nov.

Figs. 7 , 53 , 85, 86.

Type material: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: holotype male, Bremer Bay, near Cape Knob , 34°29’40”S, 119°16’29”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 7 June 2007, M.L. Moir, M.C. Leng ( WAM T 83163) . Paratypes: 12 males, 18 females, collected with holotype ( WAM T80650, T80651) ; 1 male, 2 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’29”S, 118°53’31”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 78621) ; 1 male, 2 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’29”S, 118°53’31”E, extracted from leaf litter using tullgren funnel, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 81061) ; 2 males, 2 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’23”S, 118°53’43”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 78623) .

Other material examined: AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 1 female, collected with holotype ( WAM T 80652) ; 3 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’32”S, 18°53’30”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T78778, T81060) ; 2 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’29”S, 118°53’31”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 78620) ; 3 females, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’24”S, 118°53’48”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 78777) ; 1 female, Mount Groper , in gully, 34°29’23”S, 118°53’43”E, hand collected under leaf litter, 25 October 2006, M.L. Moir, A. Sampey ( WAM T 78622) ; 1 female, Cape Knob, Cave Hill , granite overhang, 34°30’50”S, 119°17’50”E, 13 January 2007, N. McQuoid ( WAM T 78953) .

Etymology: The specific epithet is a patronym in honour of Patrick Cullen.

Diagnosis: The male gonopod morphology of Atelomastix culleni is similar to A. psittacina as sclerite a has a broad distal hood that curves around to overlap sclerite b and obscure the pseudoflagellum. However, it can be distinguished from A. psittacina as sclerite b is not significantly curved into a distal hook, and sclerite c is straight and broadened distally with a shallow concavity directed laterally.

Description: Male (holotype). Colour: generally chocolate brown; legs, anal segment and antennae light brown; prozonites mottled brown, metazonites mottled brown in preserved specimens.

Body: ca. 24 mm long and ca. 1.8 mm wide at collum. With 47 trunk segments, 81 pairs of legs, last 3 segments without legs.

Head: with ca. 38 ocelli ( Fig. 53 ), arranged in 6 rows (2: 5: 5: 8: 8: 10).

Gonopods: anterior gonopods ( Figs. 85, 86) with medium sclerotisation, 2.2 times longer than broad; sclerite a with swollen base that forms broad, curved distal hood that overlaps and extends to tip of sclerite b; upper distal face of sclerite a with 21–38 (n=2) short blunt setae; pseudoflagellum relatively short and partially visible beneath distal hood; sclerite b curved distally, forming blunt elongate tip, with 8–14 (n=2) short setae; basal process of sclerite b short, triangular, 0.08 times length of main process; sclerite c shorter than sclerite b, not bifurcate, tapering slightly to broad tip, 4–6 setae sub-medially; sub-basal setae absent where sclerites overlap and group of 11–14 (n=2) short setae sub-basally on sclerite c; posterior gonopods inconspicuous, small, with several small setae on interno-lateral face of each gonopod.

Dimensions (mm): holotype male (paratype male, WAM T78621): length ca. 24, width ca. 1.8, L/W=13.2; sclerite a 1.216 / 0.543 (1.520 / 0.720), setae 21 (38); sclerite b 0.458 (0.512), basal process of sclerite b 0.038 (0.038), setae 8 (14); sclerite c 0.768 (0.960), setae 4 (6).

Female. Similar to male, other than sexual characters, and slightly larger.

Distribution and habitat: Atelomastix culleni is only known from Bremer Bay and Mount Groper ( Fig. 7 ). Specimens were collected from leaf litter taken from forested gullies dominated by Eucalyptus , Melaleuca and Agonis .

Figures

FIGURES 7–9. Recorded distributions of Atelomastix species: 7: A. brennani, sp. nov. (●), A. culleni, sp. nov. (․), A. flavognatha, sp. nov. (♦), A. gibsoni, sp. nov. () and A. melindae, sp. nov. (̝); 8: A. anancita, sp. nov. (●), A. dendritica, sp. nov. (․), A. lengae, sp. nov. (♦), A. longbottomi, sp. nov. () and A. priona, sp. nov. (̝); 9: A. grandis, sp. nov. (●), A. psittacina, sp. nov. (․) and A. sarahae, sp. nov. (♦).

FIGURES 48–59. Lateral view of head: 48: Atelomastix albanyensis Attems, male from Two Peoples Bay Nature Reserve, Western Australia (WAM T76043); 49: A. anancita, sp. nov., male holotype from Cape Arid National Park, Western Australia (WAM T83177); 50: A. attemsi, sp. nov., male paratype from Millinup Pass, Porongurup Range National Park, Western Australia (WAM T69763); 51: A. bamfordi, sp. nov., male paratype from Mount Jackson, Western Australia (WAM T86852); 52: A. brennani, sp. nov., male holotype from Mount Le Grand, Le Grand National Park, Western Australia (WAM T83222); 53: A. culleni, sp. nov., male paratype from Mount Groper, Western Australia (WAM T78621); 54: A. danksi, sp. nov., male paratype from Toolbrunup Peak, Stirling Range National Park, Western Australia (WAM T70203); 55: A. dendritica, sp. nov., male holotype from Woody Island, Recherche Archipelago, Western Australia (WAM T47933); 56: A. ellenae, sp. nov., male paratype from Walpole, Valley of the Giants Road, Western Australia (WAM T69668); 57: A. flavognatha, sp. nov., male holotype from Quaalup Homestead, Western Australia (WAM T73955); 58: A. francesae, sp. nov., male holotype from near Tree Top Walk, Walpole, Western Australia (WAM T47953); 59: A. gibsoni, sp. nov., male holotype from Ravensthorpe Ranges, Western Australia (WAM T83220).