Syrioiulus continentalis (Attems, 1903)

Evsyukov, Aleksandr P., Golovatch, Sergei I. & Antic, Dragan Z., 2021, The millipede genera Amblyiulus Silvestri, 1896 and Syrioiulus Verhoeff, 1914 in the Caucasus, with notes on their distributions (Diplopoda, Julida, Julidae), ZooKeys 1048, pp. 109-143 : 109

publication ID	https://dx.doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1048.68454
publication LSID	lsid:zoobank.org:pub:FC201D04-9877-4583-92C2-84CC80BB75A5
persistent identifier	https://treatment.plazi.org/id/80560408-A12F-52E3-9052-2CA9F91DFB0D
treatment provided by	ZooKeys by Pensoft
scientific name	Syrioiulus continentalis (Attems, 1903)
status

Treatment

Figs 1D View Figure 1 , 8A, B View Figure 8 , 9 View Figure 9 , 10 View Figure 10 , 15D View Figure 15 , 16 View Figure 16

Pachyiulus (Dolichoiulus) continentalis Attems, 1903: 147, 148, figs 82-84 (D).

Amblyiulus continentalis - Lohmander 1932b: 40, 41, figs 33-35 (D); 1936: 156 (R); Rakhmanov 1971: 1412 (R); 1972: 116 (R); Samedov et al. 1972: 1245; Lokšina and Golovatch 1979: 385 (M); Bababekova 1996: 90 (M).

Syrioiulus continentalis - Mauriès 1982: 441 (M); 1984: 43 (M); Vagalinski 2020: 89 (M).

Material examined.

Azerbaijan: 3 ♂♂, 1 ♀ (ZMUM), Talysh Mts, Zuvand, Joni , 1500 m a.s.l., 28-29.V.1976, leg. V.G. Dolin ; 1 ♂ (ZMUM), Lenkoran, Hyrcan forest, Khan Bulan River near Alexeevka , 22.IV.1985, leg. E.B. Kupriyanova ; 7 ♂♂, 5 ♀♀, 2 juv. (ZMUM), Lenkoran, Hyrcan Nature Reserve , litter, 26.I.-4.II.1985, leg. A. Druk ; 2 ♂♂, 4 ♀♀ (ZMUM), same locality, 21.IX.1987, leg. S. Zonstein ; 2 ♂♂, 2 juv. (IZB); 1 ♂, 1 ♀, 1 juv. (SMNG), Lǝnkǝran rayon, Hyrcan Nature Reserve, Daştatük 1.3 km Xanbulan Reservoir, Parrotia forest, diverse bushes, under leaves, 110 m a.s.l., 38.6747°N, 48.7622°E GoogleMaps ; 1 ♂ (IZB); 1 ♂ (SMNG), same locality, SW of Asagi Apu , Quercus forest, within leaves and rotten wood, 180 m a.s.l., 38.6726°N, 48.7362°E, all leg. F. Walther, H. Reip, D. Antić GoogleMaps ; 3 ♂♂, 2 ♀♀, 1 juv. (IZB); 5 ♂♂, 3 ♀♀ (SMNG), Lerik rayon, Hyrcan Nature Reserve , road Lǝnkǝran-Lerik at km 32, small side valley, forest of Parrotia with some Quercus , thick leaf layer, 400 m a.s.l., 38.7638°N, 48.5819°E GoogleMaps ; 1 juv. (IZB), Astara rayon, Hyrcan Nature Reserve , SW of Zünqülǝş, beginning of a small valley, Parrotia and Alnus bushes, in leaves, 60 m a.s.l., 38.4493°N, 48.7623°E GoogleMaps ; 2 ♂♂, 1 juv. (IZB); 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀ (SMNG), same locality, end of small valley, steep slope, Parrotia , Quercus , Acer trees, under leaves and rotten tree trunks, 130 m a.s.l., 38.4480°N, 48.7597°E, all leg. F. Walther, H. Reip, D. Antić GoogleMaps ; 2 ♂♂ (ZMUM), Azfilial , 100 m a.s.l., 31.V.-1.VI.1996 ; 1 ♂ (ZMUM), Apo below Bilasar , 350 m a.s.l., 8-9.VI.1996 ; 2 ♂♂, 1 ♀, 1 juv. (ZMUM), Astara Distr., Istisu ca. 8 km WSW of Astara, Quercus , Acer , Carpinus , etc. forest, 10-30 m a.s.l., litter, under stones and bark, 10.X.1983 ; 2 ♀♀ (ZMUM), Istisu ca. 8 km SW of Masally, Quercus , Acer , Carpinus etc. forest, 80-140 m a.s.l., under bark and stones, 19-20.X.1983 ; 2 ♀♀ (ZMUM), Istisu W of Astara, 100 m a.s.l., 2-6.VI.1996, all leg. S. Golovatch.

Diagnosis.

Differs from all congeners by the following combination of somatic and gonopodal characters. Head with frontal setae. Collum and each metazona of following body rings with a whorl of long setae at caudal margin. Eyes present. Solenomere with a group of small spines on top. Anterior process of opisthomere subtriangular apically. This species is clearly distinguished in the field from all other millipedes by its characteristic greyish yellow colouration with a yellow stripe dorsally, and its particularly strong odour clearly resembling that of Pachyiulus krivolutskyi from the western Caucasus (= Colchis).

Redescription.

Length of adults 28-45 mm (♂♂) or 26-46 mm (♀♀), width 2.0-2.3 mm (♂♂) or 2.2-2.7 mm (♀♀). Number of body rings in adults, 46-66+1-2+T (♂♂) or 49-66+1-2+T (♀♀). Body subcylindrical, metazonae from greyish yellow to yellow, prozonae light yellow (Figs 1D View Figure 1 , 8A, B View Figure 8 ); live specimens dorsally with a darker, vivid yellow stripe (Fig. 8B View Figure 8 ). Head, collum and telson slightly lighter than other body rings (Fig. 8A, B View Figure 8 ). Antennae grey, mouthparts and legs light yellow (Fig. 9A-G View Figure 9 ). Eyes present, black, oval, each composed of 19-23 ommatidia (Fig. 9A, C View Figure 9 ). Striations on metazonae deep, not reaching the caudal margin, 28-32 striae per quarter of metazonal surface, i.e., between dorsal axial line and ozopore (Fig. 9D View Figure 9 ). Ozopores large, lying behind suture without touching it (Fig. 9H View Figure 9 ).

Antennae relatively long, in situ reaching segment 3. Head with 1+1 frontal, 8+8-9+9 labral and 2+2-4+4 supralabral setae (Fig. 9A-C View Figure 9 ). Gnathochilarium with three long setae on each lamella lingualis, groups of several small setae in median part of stipites and six or seven long setae at anterolateral margin (Fig. 9I View Figure 9 ). Collum and each following metazona with a whorl of long and thick setae at posterior margin (Fig. 9A-F View Figure 9 ). Epiproct undeveloped (Fig. 9E, F View Figure 9 ). Hypoproct subtriangular, with long setae (Fig. 9G View Figure 9 ). Telson and anal valves densely setose, setae being long.

Male. Mandibular stipites expanded, with swollen lobes (Fig. 9A View Figure 9 ). Leg pair 1 small, unciform, telopodites directed anteromesad, with a group of long setae on each coxa; telopodite setose in basal part (Fig. 9J View Figure 9 ). Leg pair 2 with pads on postfemur and tibia (Fig. 9K View Figure 9 ). Penes short, bifurcate. Ventral edge of male pleurotergum 7 with narrow elongated lamellae bordering the gonopodal aperture (Fig. 9L View Figure 9 ).

Gonopods (Fig. 10 View Figure 10 ) with anterior (promere) part higher than posterior (opisthomere) one. Promere spoon-shaped, constricted in basal third; mesal ridge wide along 2/3 extent; with denticles in apical part: mesal denticle small and broadly rounded, lateral one well-expressed and long (Fig. 10B, E View Figure 10 ). Mesomeral process simple, slightly curved, flattened apically (Fig. 10A, C, F View Figure 10 ). Opisthomere bipartite (Fig. 10D View Figure 10 ). Solenomere elongated, with an apical membranous lobe, subtriangular at apex, with a fovea and a group of small spines on top; caudomesal lamella wide (Fig. 10A, C, D, F View Figure 10 ). Anterior process of opisthomere subtriangular apically (Fig. 10D View Figure 10 ).

Female. First two leg pairs unmodified. Operculum of vulva without setae on caudal surface, apical margin relatively flat (Fig. 15D View Figure 15 ). Bursa subsymmetrical, lateral valve slightly larger than mesal one. Each valve with two rows of long setae. Median field of bursa narrow; emargination of median field suboval.

Remarks.

Probably one of the most common and apparently the largest species of the genus. The unusually strong odour and the chemical composition of the repugnatorial secretion are similar to those of Pachyiulus krivolutskyi (Makarov et al., pers. obs.). This species inhabits various deciduous forests in Azerbaijan, also occurring in northern Iran ( Lohmander 1932b), endemic to the Hyrcanian biogeographic province (Fig. 16 View Figure 16 ).