Sphaerobelum schwendingeri Wesener 2019, new species
Creators: name: Wesener, Thomas
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2019
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Diplopoda
Sphaerotheriida
Zephronidae
Sphaerobelum
Sphaerobelum schwendingeri

description: Sphaerobelum schwendingeri new species
Figure 25
Material examined: Type material. 1 M holotype (MHNG LT 10/03) from Laos;, Vientiane Province, trail to Tham Pou Kham, W. of Vang Vieng (N18°55'32", 102°23'58"E), 240 m, secondary forest on limestone hill, leg. 7.IX.2010, P. Schwendinger. 1 M paratype (MHNG LT 10 /03), same data as previous. 1 F paratype (SMF), from Laos, Vientiane Province, Vang Vieng, Tham Pou Kham, 260 m (N18°55.549', 102°23.734'E), outside cave, close to cave stream, at rocks, leg. by hand, 13.III.2007, P. Jäger & F. Steinmetz.
Other material examined: 1 M, 1 imm. F (SMF) from Laos, Vientiane Province, Van Vieng, across Nam Song, Tham Chang, in or in front of cave (N18°54.550', 102°26.527'E), 270 m, leg. by hand, P. Jäger & S. Packheiser, 22.Vii.2018. 1 M (ZFMK MYR8103), same data as previous.
Diagnosis: S. schwendingeri n. sp. belongs to a group of Sphaerobelum species in which the mesal margin of the femur is unmodified (Fig. 25B). S. schwendingeri n. sp. shares only with S. hirsutum, S. clavigerum, S. nigrum n. sp., S. splendidum n. sp. and S. laoticum n. sp. the presence of a "hook" at telopoditomere 4 of the posterior telopods(Figs 25F, G). S. schwendingeri n. sp. differs from S. hirsutum in the presence of glabrous tergites, from S. clavigerum in the presence of a short locking carina on the anal shield. It differs from S. nigrum n. sp. in the presence of a cylindrical antennomere 6, the presence of 8–10 ventral spines on the tarsi (Fig. 25B), and the presence of a strongly curved telopoditomere 4 of the posterior telopod, all characters only shared with S. splendidum n. sp. and S. laoticum n. sp. For a differentiation of S. schwendingeri n. sp. with S. splendidum n. sp. see above. For a differentiation to S. laoticum n. sp. see above.
Description: based on male holotype and paratypes of both sexes.
Measurements: holotype male: body length 27.3 mm. Width, of thoracic shield = 13.3 mm (= widest). Height, of thoracic shield = 7.4 mm high (= highest). Female: Body length: broken and rolled up, ca. 37 mm. Width, of thoracic shield = 18 mm (unclear of broadest, broken). Coloration: in preserved specimens tergites black, posterior third olive. Head and collum black, anterior half of head green. Antennae and legs orange-red.
Head: Eyes with ca. 70 ocelli. Last antennomere thickened. Apical disc with 73/71 apical cones (male), or 36/ 37 (female). All antennomeres covered by long setae. Organ of Tömösváry located inside antennal groove.
Gnathochilarium: structure typical of the order. Palpi sensory cones located in several clusters. Mandibles: not dissected.
Stigmatic plates: first stigmatic plate widely rounded, apex well-rounded, slightly curved towards coxa 1 (Fig. 25A). Laterotergites: laterotergite 1 and 2 slightly elongated into a short, broad process. Collum: with glabrous surface, margins with few isolated setae. Thoracic shield: surface glabrous, but covered with small pits like tergites, setae only in grooves. Shallow grooves beset with numerous long setae, slope towards groove without keels. Tergites: glabrous, shiny. Anterior third with a few setae only visible when the specimen is rolled up, producing a golden sheen. Tips of paratergites of midbody tergites projecting posteriorly. Endotergum: inner section without any setae or spines. Middle area with a single row of sparse elliptical, cuticular impressions, distance between impressions larger than their diameter. Apically 3-4 dense rows of short marginal bristles, the longest just protruding up to half of length to tergal margin. Bristles not smooth, but with numerous small spicules. Anal shield: sexually dimorphic, in female slightly flattened, in male weakly bell-shaped. Glabrous. Underside without locking carinae. Legs: leg-pair 1 with 2 ventral spines, leg-pair 2 with 6, leg-pair 3 with 6. First two legpairs without an apical spine. Leg-pairs 4–21 with 6–8 ventral spines and one dorso-apical spine. In leg 9 femur 1.7 times, tarsus 3.8 times longer than wide (Fig. 25B). All podomeres densely setose. Coxa with a well rounded process. Coxa process absent at first leg (Fig. 25A) and sharp-edged at second (Fig. 25C).
Female sexual characters: Vulva large, covering mesal 2/3 of coxa, extending mesally to anterior third of prefemur (Fig. 25C). Operculum rounded, central part recessed, mesal margin broadly projecting into a sharpedged triangle slightly as higher than remaining operculum. Subanal plate: not examined.
Male sexual characters: gonopore large, covered by small, inconspicuous plate. Anterior telopods (Figs 25D, E): Consisting of three telopoditomere above syncoxite. Last telopoditomeres completely fused. Telopoditomere 1 rectangular, slightly longer than wide. Telopoditomere 2 large, as long as telopoditomere 3. Process of telopoditomere 2 located posteriorly, apex visible in anterior view. Process of telopoditomere 2 wide, projecting to length of telopoditomere 3, strongly curved, apically with a well-rounded tip. Telopoditomere 3 massive, cylindrical, straight, apically slightly tapering. Posterior side with three large spines. In anterior view all telopoditomeres covered by long setae, in posterior view telopoditomeres 2 and 3 only with marginal setae. Posterior telopods (Figs 25F, G): telopoditomere 1 rectangular, slightly longer than wide. Immovable finger (process of telopoditomere 2) shorter than movable finger, consisting of telopoditomeres 3 and 4. Immovable finger with a spine in anterior view, a characteristic, distally swollen apex, slightly swollen. Apically broader than base, at tip in anterior view with a few large, crenulated teeth. Telopoditomere 3 elongated, at midpoint with a triangular extension carrying a spine towards immovable finger. Telopoditomere 4 tapering, anterior half strongly curved 90° towards immovable finger, which it overlaps. At inner margin with two larger spines. Entire telopoditomere 1 at both sides covered with long setae. Telopoditomere 2 anterior side completely covered by setae except for tip of immovable finger, posterior side glabrous except for lateral margin. Telopoditomere 3 only basally in anterior view with setae, remaining part, as well as telopoditomere 4 glabrous.
Derivatio nominis: schwendingeri, noun in apposition, after the Arachnologist Peter Schwendinger, great collector of arthropods in Southeast Asia.
description: Published as part of Wesener, Thomas, 2019, First records of giant pill-millipedes from Laos (Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida, Zephroniidae), pp. 201-248 in Zootaxa 4563 (2) on pages 238-239, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4563.2.1, http://zenodo.org/record/2601072