Haslundiella iranica Gaju, Molero, Tahami & Sadeghi

Molero, Rafael, Tahami, Mohadeseh Sadat, Gaju, Miquel & Sadeghi, Saber, 2018, A survey of basal insects (Microcoryphia and Zygentoma) from subterranean environments of Iran, with description of three new species, ZooKeys 806, pp. 17-46 : 17

Haslundiella iranica Gaju, Molero, Tahami & Sadeghi sp. n. Figs 2, 3, 4, 5, 6; Tables 1, 2

Type material.

Holotype (MNCN): male, body length = 8.5 mm, preserved in alcohol and partially mounted on slide, both vial and slide labelled "Mirza Cave, Rafsanjan, Kerman Province, Iran. 20.VI.2015. Cat. Types N. 2834"; "HOLOTYPE ♂ Haslundiella iranica sp. n., des. Gaju, Molero, Tahami & Sadeghi, 2018". Paratypes (3 ex.): 1 male (UCO): same data as holotype, preserved in alcohol and partially mounted on slide, Ref. M1655a. 1 female juvenile, preserved in alcohol (Fig. 2): same locality and date, Ref. M1655b. 1 female (ZM-CBSU): from Khane Khoda cave, Heart, Yazd Province, Iran. 30.IX.2015, preserved in alcohol and partially mounted on slide (#C2636).

Diagnosis.

Machilidae of medium size, about 8-9 mm. Body unpigmented. Compound eyes wider than long (l/w = 0.65), lateral ocelli in sublateral position. Antennae shorter than body length, distal chains with a lower number of annuli compared with the remaining species of the genus. Coxal styli on middle and hind legs. Urosternites with 1+1 eversible vesicles; sternites with their posterior angle slightly obtuse, about 95°. Male without special chaetotaxy on maxillary palps and legs. Proximal part of the penis less than 1.3 times longer than the distal part. Female ovipositor with 1+58 divisions.

Description.

Habitus of the new species. All specimens, although coming from two different locations (about 300 km apart from each other), are very similar because their whitish, unpigmented bodies (Fig. 2). Body length of male 8.5 mm, female 9 mm. Body and appendages covered with scales and completely devoid of pigment. Paracercus and cerci broken. Dorsal scales pattern unknown. Meso and metathorax as usual in the order, not especially humped. Antennae shorter than the body, the specimen with longest antennae, a subadult female 7.5 mm long, with antennae of 3.9 mm (Fig. 2). Compound eyes black (Fig. 3, from adult female, those of males not clearly visible), wider than long (l/w: 0.65 and cl/l: 0.53). Frons not especially protruded between paired ocelli, which are brownish, sublateral, transversally ovoid: w/l: 2.29; not especially small (w.ocellus/w.eye: 0.55).

Description of males. Head: Antennae broken in the holotype (preserved length: 3.6 mm), scapus (Fig. 4A) not especially long (l/w: 1.52); distal chains with 10, 11 annuli (Fig. 4B); each annulus with one circle of bristles, slightly longer than the diameter of the annuli (Fig. 4C), some of them straight and strong others thinner and curled; the penultimate annuli of each chain with two specialized basiconic sensilla. Male maxillary palp not modified and without special chaetotaxy (Fig. 4D, E), all articles of similar length, only the third article slightly shorter (l 3rd/l 7th = 0.88). Hyaline spines in articles 5, 6 and 7 typical, low in number (2, 6 and 7 respectively); article ratios shown in Table 1. Labial palp typical, third article not specially enlarged (Fig. 4F); sensorial cones typical, not very numerous (Fig. 4G), surrounded by strong bristles slightly longer than these cones (in the female this character is clearer).

Thorax: Second and third pair of legs with a stylus on the coxa, their length about 2/3 of the coxa (0.63). Fore femur not especially enlarged (Fig. 4H); hind tibiae longer than fore and mid tibiae (Figs 4H-J); all legs without special chaetotaxy, only with spines inserted ventrally on femora, tibiae and tarsi (Fig. 4K and Table 2); these spines have their distal part dark.

Abdomen: urosternites with medial sternite (Fig. 5A), slightly obtusangle (95°); with one pair of eversible vesicles on urocoxites I-VII; styli present on segments II-IX, the terminal spine of each stylus not so long; styli with strong subterminal spiniform setae (Fig. 5B); stylus/coxite and spine/stylus ratios shown in Table 1. Coxites VII-IX with hyaline spines (Fig. 5C, F and Table 1). Male genitalia without parameres VIII; penis and parameres IX completely covered by coxites IX, surpassing slightly half the coxite (Fig. 5E); parameres with 1+6-7 divisions (Fig. 5G), not surpassing the tip of penis; proximal part of penis longer than distal part, ratio pp/pd: 1.26. Penis opening subterminal (Fig. 5H).

Description of females. The only adult female has most of its appendages broken and some of them are lost, specifically right antennae, left maxillary palp, fore legs and left middle leg.

Head: As described in habitus section. Antennae broken, only the basal part of the left one is preserved; scapus similar to that of the male (Fig. 5I). Maxillary palp broken, the three basal articles preserved shown in Fig. 5L. Labial palp (Fig. 5J) as in male, but the strong setae surrounding the sensorial cones of the third article seem stronger (Fig. 5K).

Thorax: Middle and hind legs (Fig. 6A, B) similar to that of male, but slightly bigger; without special chaetotaxy, only ventral spines on femora, tibiae and tarsi (Table 2).

Abdomen: sternites typical of the genus, slightly obtusangle (95°), slightly bigger than those of male (Fig. 6C); styli of coxite similar to those of males (Fig. 6D). Coxite VII modified, with a terminal inner projection (Fig. 6E); one spine in its outer side. Coxites VIII and IX typical, with one spine in the outer side of the former (Fig. 6F) and two spines in the inner part of the later (Fig. 6G). Ovipositor of tertiary type, with 1 + 58 divisions, not attaining the apex of styli IX (Fig. 6G); gonapophysis VIII (Fig. 6H, I) with conspicuous chaetotaxy in the 22 distal divisions (36-58) and gonapophysis IX (Fig. 6J, K) in the 19 distal divisions (39-58), in the remaining divisions the chaetotaxy consists of very small bristles (if they are present).

Discussion.

The first species described of the genus Haslundiella Janetschek, 1954 was found in Palestine and was named as Praemachilis steinitzi (Wygodzinsky, 1942). In their description Wygodzinsky (1942) suggested that "The remarkable formation of maxillary palp and the genitalia of the male might, in the future, lead to establish a new genus within the Praemachilinae ". Janetschek (1954) erected the genus Haslundiella , including in it only H. steinitzi . Kaplin (1982) described the second species of this genus ( H. nisensis Kaplin, 1982) from Turkmenistan. Now, Haslundiella iranica sp. n. is described from Iran, geographically placed between the two former species.

Haslundiella iranica sp. n., can be distinguished from the other species by several characters, with the most remarkable being the significant absence of special chaetotaxy on the maxillary palps and the legs of males. Moreover, some other characters can be mentioned: Antennae are shorter than body length; the shape of the maxillary palp is different because all articles are similar in length, showing clear differences with H. steinitzi and H. nisensis (Table 1); and legs are similar in shape but with very different chaetotaxy. The male genitalia of H. iranica is clearly different from that of H. steinitzi and similar to H. nisensis , although penis ratios are different to those of both previously described species. The female ovipositor does not surpass the styli IX, as in H. nisensis , although with lower number of divisions, meanwhile that of H. steinitzi has a low number of divisions but surpasses the styli IX.

Distribution.

Only known from the two localities in Kerman and Yazd provinces in Iran (see Fig. 1).

Etymology.

The name iranica is a genitive case of the name Iran, the country where the new species is found.

Habitat.

The specimens were found and collected close to the entrance of the cave where it was still darker and more humid than the outside (somewhere between the endogean and parahypogean zones) and couldn’t be found deeper in as the cave is a complex of horizontal (about 50 m from the entrance) and then vertical (a 50 m of a vertical pit) passages reaching a big hall at the end.