Multipronopea agneteae, Enghoff, 2022

Enghoff, Henrik, 2022, Mountains of millipedes. The family Odontopygidae in the Eastern Arc Mountains of Tanzania (Diplopoda, Spirostreptida), European Journal of Taxonomy 803, pp. 1-136 : 68-73

Multipronopea agneteae gen. et sp. nov.

urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:08B6C1A5-8B3F-4323-B62A-65266561F1F0

Figs 43–46

Diagnosis

Redundant, genus monotypic.

Etymology

After Agnete Elisabeth Enghoff (1924–2019), the author’s mother and ‘landlady’ of ‘Hotel Dolichoiulus’.

Material examined (total 4 ♂♂)

Holotype TANZANIA • ♂; Morogoro Region, Morogoro District, Kasanga FR ; 37°45′ E, 7°10′ S, 700–900 m a.s.l.; 27 Jul.–2 Aug. 2000; Uluguru Mountains Biodiversity Conservation Project 2000; Nike Doggart leg.; lowland submontane forest, taken from leaf litter and rotting logs; NHMD 621749 .

Paratypes TANZANIA • 1 ♂; Morogoro Region, Morogoro District, Chamayani FR , Mvuha; 07°10′ S, 37°50′ E, 160–300 m a.s.l.; Jul. 2000; Uluguru Mountains Biodiversity Conservation Project, Nike Doggart leg.; riverine and lowland forest, taken from leaf litter and rotting logs; NHMD 621750 • 2 ♂♂; Uluguru Mts , Kimboza Forest; 250 m a.s.l.; 18 Jul. 1981; M. Stoltze and N. Scharff leg.; NHMD 621751 .

Description (male)

SIZE. Length 42–55 mm, diameter 2.1–2.8 mm, 67–74 podous rings, no apodous rings in front of telson.

COLOUR. After 18–37 years in alcohol faded to uniform brownish white, except, in specimen from Kimboza Forest, for brown head, collum and other pregonopodal rings; the latter with indications of dark middorsal spots, i.e., no signs on dorsal light band.

SUPRALABRAL SETAE. 6.

MANDIBULAR STIPES. Distal margin shallowly concave, bilobed.

ANAL VALVES. With small yet distinct dorsal spine; ventral spine blunt, almost as large as dorsal spine; margins not raised, three sessile marginal setae.

LIMBUS ( Fig. 44E–G ). Peculiar: margin with long, thin, simple, double or triple spines; each with a high, arched, longitudinal ridge. Cuticle in front of limbus ( Fig. 44H ) roughly spinose, some spines rodlike.

LEGS. Postfemoral and tibial pads well-developed from leg-pair 3 or 4 backward, diminishing in size and eventually disappearing towards posterior end.

FIRST PAIR OF LEGS ( Fig. 43A–C ). Prefemoral lobes rounded-triangular in ventral view. One to three coxosternal setae (CXS) close to lateral margin of coxosternum, well separated from prefemoral lobes. Prefemora with one mesalpical seta (APS) and ca 10 peglike lateral sensilla (LPS).

STERNUM 9 ( Fig. 43D ). High, tongue-like, distal part almost circular in outline.

GONOPOD COXA ( Fig. 44A–D ). Proplica (PP) simple, with straight mesal margin, ending in small proplical lobe (PPL). Metaplica (MP) with large metaplical flange (MF) almost closing mesal opening of coxa; with a rounded mesal process (mrp), somewhat resembling the flipper of a seal, ca at midlength; cucullus (CU) triangular in outline, open in top ( Fig. 44D ).

GONOPOD TELOPODITE ( Figs 45–46 ). Arculus 90°. Torsotope (TT) compact, with a flattened post-torsal spine/lobe (PTS). Post-torsal narrowing (PN) pronounced, extended. Solenomere (SLM) very long and slender, ca same length as telomere, making two complete coils, with a very long basal spine (bss) ( Fig. 45 , bss somewhat shorter in specimen from Kimboza), tip of solenomere ( Figs 45C , 46F ) unequally bifurcate. Telomere (TM) from a moderately broad basis (considerably broader in specimen from Kimboza) drawn out into extremely long, slender, curved process (tp) formed by a longitudinally folded narrow sheet; one edge of sheet coarsely dentate; a stout, darkened spine (bts) on anterior basal margin of telomere.

Distribution and habitat

Known from three lowland to submontane FRs in the Uluguru Mts, altitude 160–900 m a.s.l. See Doggart et al. (2004) for information on these areas.

Remarks

The specimens from Kimboza FR differ slightly from the others: fewer podous rings (Kimboza: 67, Chamayani: 74); basal solenomeral spine shorter, but basal part of telomere broader. For the time being, these differences are interpreted as intraspecific variation.

Figures

Fig. 43. Multipronopea agneteae gen. et sp. nov., paratype, ♂, from Chamayani F.R. (NHMD 621750). A–C. First pair of legs. A. Sublateral view. B. Ventral view. C. Anterior view. D. Sternum 9. Abbreviations: APS=mesapical prefemoral setae; CXS =coxosternal setae; LPS =lateral prefemoral setae. Scale bars =0.1 mm.

Fig. 44. Multipronopea agneteae gen. et sp. nov., holotype, ♂ (NHMD 621749). A–D. Left gonopod coxa. A. Anterior view. B. Mesal view. C. Posterior view. D. Apical view. E–G. Midbody dorsal limbus. H. cuticle near limbus. Abbreviations: CU=cucullus; MF =metaplical flange; MP=metaplica; mrp = metaplical rounded process PP =proplica; PPL =proplical lobe. Scale bars: A–D= 0.1 mm; E =0.01 mm; F =0.005 mm; G–H =0.002 mm.

Fig. 45. Multipronopea agneteae gen. et sp. nov., holotype, ♂ (NHMD 621749), left gonopod telopodite. A. Anterior view, showing tip of telomere process. B. Posterior view. C. Tip of solenomere. D. Anteriordistal (ventral) view. E. Mesal view, showing tip of solenomere. F. Ventral view. G. Anterio-mesal view. Abbreviations:BSS = basal solenomeral spine; bts = besal telomeral spine; PTS = post-torsal spine; SLM =solenomere;TM =telomere;tp =telomeral process. Scale bars: A–B, D–G=0.1 mm; C=0.02 mm.

Fig. 46. Multipronopea agneteae gen. et sp. nov., paratype, ♂, from Kimboza (NHMD 621751), left gonopod telopodite. A. Anterior view. B. Posterior view. C. Apical (ventral) view. D. Meso-posterior view. E. Tip of telomere. F. Solenomere, main tip reconstructed (red). Abbreviations: BSS =basal solenomeral spine; bts =besal telomeral spine; PN= post-torsal narrowing; PTS =post-torsal spine; SLM =solenomere; TM =telomere; tp =telomeral process. Scale bars: A, C–D, F = 0.1 mm; B=0.2 mm; E =0.05 mm.