Otostigmus (O.) politus Karsch, 1881

Lewis, J. G. E., 2000, Variation in three centipede species of the genus Otostigmus and its bearing on species discrimination (Chilopoda; Scolopendromorpha; Scolopendridae), Journal of Natural History 34, pp. 433-448 : 436-438

Otostigmus (O.) politus Karsch, 1881

(®gures 11±19)

Otostigma politum Karsch, 1881: 219

Otostigmus politus: Kraepelin, 1903: 109

(O.) politus: Attems, 1930: 149 , ®gures 177±180

iagnosis Tergites marginate at least from 17. Basal three antennomeres glabrous dorsally. Sternites with complete paramedian sutures. End leg prefemur with one lateral row three to ®ve spines.

Material examined Rennell Island Galathea Expedition 1950±52 ( ZMC). Spms 4 and 5; 35 and mm, Stn no. L352, Lavanggu, 11ss39¾S, 160ss14¾E, 13 October 1951. Spm 21; mm, Stn no. L379, Niupani, 11ss41¾S 160ss22¾E, 24 October 1951. Spm 20; 32 mm,

no. L372, Lanvanggu, 20 October 1951. Rennell Island, Torben Wol leg 1965 ( ZMC). Spm 12; 24 mm, Hutuna, March 1965. Spm 14; 32 mm, with six adolescens, from soil in primary forest, March 1965. Rennell Island, Noona Dan Expedition 1961±62 ( ZMC). Spm 18 and 19; 41

27 mm, Niupani, 29 August 1962. IGS 11±19. Otostigmus politus ; (11) dorsal view of head, spm 4; (12) forcipular coxosternal toothplates, spm 4; (13) forcipular prefemoral process, spm 4; (14) tergite 12, spm 4; (15) dorsal view of tergite 21 and end leg prefemur, spm 4; (16) sternite 14, spm 4; (17) sternite 21, spm 21; (18) sternite 21 and coxopleuron, spm 4; (19) lateral view terminal segments, spm 18. Scale line= 1 mm.

Description of Rennell Island material

Maximum length 41 mm. Head capsule ®nely punctate. Antennae with 17, 18 or

antennomeres, the basal three glabrous dorsally (®gure 11). Of the 15 antennae examined three were damaged and three regenerated.

Forcipular coxosternal teeth 4 +4 with three main teeth on each side, the inner

separated by a deep incision from the outer which has a small subsidiary tooth

its side (®gure 12). Forcipular prefemoral process with two low teeth (®gure 13).

Tergites with paramedian sutures complete from 5 or 7, marginate from 6 or 7, without keels or spines, lateral longitudinal corrugations indistinct (®gure 14). Tergite 21 with posterior median groove (®gure 15). Sternites with complete paramedian sutures, a longitudinal median pit and a round posterior pit (®gure 16). The posterior pit absent in specimen 1. In small specimens (22 and 24 mm) sternite 21

sides converging posteriorly (®gure 17), less so in larger ones of 32 + mm gure 18). The hind border incurved.

Coxopleural process with three end spines, one lateral spine and one dorsal spine gure 19). End legs: prefemur typically with four ventrolateral, two or three ventromedial, one to four medial and one or two dorsomedials and a corner spine gure 15).

Legs without femoral spines, a tibial spine on leg one in specimens 5 and 18.

or two tarsal spines on legs 1 and 2, one tarsal spine on legs 3±19 or 20. End

lack tarsal spines.

Remarks

Kraepelin (1903) re-examined the type material from China and apparently, material from Burma, Sumatra , New Guinea and? Australia. He distinguished three forms. That from Sumatra with a dorsal coxopleural spine, those from China and

Guinea without. The coxopleural process three-spined in Chinese, two-spined New Guinea specimens. The Rennell Island material is very similar to O. politus

described by Kraepelin. The characters of his material (Rennell Island in parentheses) are: Antennomeres 17, 18 (17±19). Forcipular coxosternal teeth four or ®ve four). Tergite paramedian sutures complete 4 or 5 (5 or 7), marginate from 9 or

(6 or 7). Coxopleural process with two or three end spines (three), one lateral spine (one), mostly without dorsal spine (always one). First four or ®ve pairs of legs

two tarsal spines (one and two only). Leg 20 lacks tarsal spines (may be present).

The data on O. politus are confusing. Attems (1930) distinguished three subspe-

, the nominate from China and two from Australia; O. p. pigmentatus Attems,

with a three-spined coxopleural process and a dorsal coxopleural spine and

p. australianu s Attems, 1930 for Kraepelin’ s (1916) O. cfr politus , a small (25 mm) specimen from Queensland, with the coxopleural process two-spined and with no dorsal spine, sternite 21 quadrate and tergites marginate from 17 or 19. The latter subspecies di ers markedly from other O. politus and should be re-assessed. So too should O. p. mandschuriu s Verhoe, 1942, details of which are incomplete. Otostigm us

schindleri WuÈrmli, 1972 from East Sumba with 2.6 rather than three basal antennomeres glabrous and an extremely long coxopleural process runs down to

glaber Chamberlin, 1920 in Attems’ (1930) key if it is considered to have a dorsal coxopleural spine. It is certainly a very distinct form. Lewis’s (1991) specimen from Krakatau with two end spines, two or three lateral spines and two or three dorsal spines should be re-examined: his ®gure shows a single dorsal spine and could be regarded as having three end spines and two lateral spines. Unlike other O. politus has short paramedian sutures on anterior sternites, these almost complete from

mid-body region on.