Ctenolepisma armeniacum Molero-Baltanás, Gaju-Ricart, Bach

Kahrarian, Morteza, Molero, Rafael & Gaju, Miquel, 2016, The genus Ctenolepisma (Zygentoma: Lepismatidae) in Western Iran, with description of three new species, Zootaxa 4093 (2), pp. 217-230 : 228

Ctenolepisma armeniacum Molero-Baltanás, Gaju-Ricart, Bach de Roca & Mendes, 2010

Fig. 31

Studied material. One male and one female, Kermanshah Province/Sar-e-pol-e- Zahab County, Iran. Deposited in UCO, Ref. Z2504.

Remarks. This species was described on the basis of a female from Sovetasen, Armenia. Most characteristics of the Iranian specimens match those of the original description, including the diagnostic characters that distinguish this species from its close relatives, C. ciliatum and C. longicaudatum . However, some descriptive comments about the male of this species and additional variability of some characters can be mentioned.

Body length of male: 14.5 mm. Antennae broken, only 4.5 mm preserved. Apical article of the maxillary palp 8 times longer than wide and 1.1 times longer than the antedistal article.

The number of lateral combs on the nota is slightly greater in both sexes in the Iranian specimens than in the original description of the females: 11 combs with 3‒10 macrosetae in the pronotum, 15 combs with 2‒9 macrosetae in the mesonotum (erroneously labeled in the original description as mesosternum,) and 13 lateral combs with 2‒8 macrosetae in the metanotum (labeled erroneously as metasternum).

In the prosternum of the male the lateral combs are partially fused, so it shows apparently only 3+3 lateral combs, and the mesosternum 2+2. The distance between the combs of the metasternum is less than the width of a comb.

The urotergal setation is similar to that of the female; only the sublateral combs may be composed of a greater number of macrosetae (up to 16).

The male has two pairs of styli, as does the female. The Abd. IX styli are about 3 times longer than the inner process of coxite IX. This process in the male is 1.2 times longer than wide at its base and about 3.8 times longer than the outer process ( Fig. 31 ). In the original description of the female, the ratio length/width of this coxite was misstated because the text described the coxite IX as being 2.3 times wider than long, but this coxite in the female is actually 2.3 times longer than wide at its base, as the relevant figure illustrates.

Caudal filaments broken; maximum length preserved of a cercus up to 6.5 mm.

Figures

FIGURE 31. Ctenolepisma armeniacum. Photomicrograph of coxite IX and stylus of a male. Scale: 0.5 mm.