Willemia tondoh, Zon, Serge Déméango, Bedos, Anne & D'Haese, Cyrille A., 2015

Zon, Serge Déméango, Bedos, Anne & D'Haese, Cyrille A., 2015, Phylogeny of the genus Willemia (Collembola: Hypogastruridae) and biogeography of the W. buddenbrocki - group with description of a new species from Ivory Coast (western Africa), Zootaxa 3980 (2), pp. 230-240 : 231-233

Willemia tondoh sp. nov.

Figs 1–6

Type material. Holotype female (IV-VJW2L1, LZBA-UFHB) and four paratypes females (VC02P2, LZBA- UFHB; VC01S7, MNHN-EA 012013; VJ12L1, MNHN-EA 012014 and VC01L8, MNHN-EA 012015).

Type locality and sampling dates. Ivory Coast, Taabo, Zougoussi terroir near Lamto reserve. Holotype (sample VJW2L1): 29 October 2012, litter in old fallow, 06°15’28”N and 05°01’42.1”W. Two paratypes (sample VC01L8 and VC01S7): 13 November 2012, in cocoa culture, 06°15’43.6”N and 05°01’29.8”W. One paratype (sample VJ12L1): 27 October 2012, in mixed cultures, 06°15’25.9”N and 05°01’36”W. One paratype (sample VC02P2): 15 November 2012, in cocoa culture, 06°15’30”N and 05°01’38.7”W.

Description. Body length: holotype 400 µm, paratypes 400–540 µm. Color in alcohol white, body with short acuminate ordinary chaetae, some slightly longer. Sensory chaetae a little thicker and longer than ordinary chaetae. Tegumental granulation fine and regular.

Antennae somewhat shorter than head’s diagonal. Ant. I and Ant. II with 7 and 11 chaetae respectively. Ant. III and IV only hardly separated. Sensorial organ of Ant. III consisting of a large integumentary fold hiding 2 internal s -microchaetae, 2 long guard chaetae, 2 long sensory rods, and one ventral microsensillum ( Fig. 4 ). Ant. IV with a small globular apical vesicle, s-chaetae comprising: S2/d and S9/e1 absent or not differentiated from ordinary chaetae; S1/ i1 and S8/e2 subcylindrical or hardly differentiated from ordinary chaetae; S4/ i2 and S7/e3 globular in cavity covered by a tegumental fold. External part of the cavity with microsensillum. Subapical organite present.

Postantennal organ with 9 vesicles ( Figs 1 & 3 ), no eyes. Chaetae a0 and c1 absent on head ( Fig. 1 ). Prelabrum/labrum with 2/5,3,4 chaetae. Three pairs of labial chaetae. Head ventral chaetotaxy as in Fig. 2 .

Dorsal body chaetotaxy presented in Fig. 1 . Some variation and asymmetries present. Chaetae s per half tergum formula: 22/11111 generally, in m7 and p4 position on thorax II and III terga, in p4 position on abdominal terga I to IV and p2 position on Abd. V i.e. ordinary chaeta p2 absent. Thorax II and III with reduced chaetotaxy: m3 likely to be missing ( Fig. 1 ). Abd. II and III with a2, but without m-row. Abdomen IV without m1, m2, m3, or m’3 or p5.

Tibiotarsal chaetotaxy I, II and III with 11 chaetae each. Unguis with a small empodial appendage and without teeth ( Fig. 6 ). Ventral tube with 4 + 4 chaetae. Ventral abdominal chaetotaxy as in Fig. 5 . Furcula absent. Female genital plate with 2 chaetae.

Anal valves with 2 hr chaetae and without e and z chaetae ( Fig. 5 ). Two anal spines well developed.

Derivatio nominis. The new species is cordially dedicated to Jérôme E. Tondoh , Professor of soil ecology at Nangui Abrogoua University (Abidjan, Ivory Coast), who is the initiator of Collembola studies within the research unit on soil fauna. The noun is in apposition (article 31.1 of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature).

Distribution. It has to be noted that W. brevispina belongs to the buddenbrocki -group (D'Haese & Weiner 1998) and has been originally described from South America but it has been mentioned from Gambia ( Murphy 1965). At that time two other species only were known in the group: W. nadchatrami Yosii, 1959 (Continental South-East Asian and Malaysian regions) and W. buddenbrocki Hüther, 1959 (widely distributed). The specimen collected by Murphy has possibly been identified as W. brevispina because its general morphology was compatible with its description, at that time. Since Gambia and Ivory Coast are located in western Africa, it is highly probable the species mentioned by Murphy is actually a new undescribed species closely related to if not W. tondoh sp. nov.

Figures

FIGURES 1 – 6. Willemia tondoh sp. nov.: 1, general dorsal chaetotaxy; 2, ventral chaetotaxy of head and mouth; 3, left postantennal organ; 4, Ant. I – IV; 5, Abd. I – VI ventral chaetotaxy; 6, leg III.