Zoosphaerium neptunus
Creators: name: Wesener, Thomas
name: Sagorny, Christina
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2021
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Diplopoda
Sphaerotheriida
Arthrosphaeridae
Zoosphaerium
Zoosphaerium neptunus

description: Zoosphaerium neptunus (Butler, 1872)
Sphaerotherium digitale de Saussure & Zehntner, 1897: pl. 5 fig. 16.
Sphaerotherium pygidiale de Saussure & Zehntner, 1902: 42.
See Wesener & Wägele (2008) for a revision and Wesener (2016) for a complete bibliography.
Material examined
MADAGASCAR – Antsiranana • 3 ♂♂; SAVA, Parc National de Marojejy, 6.5 km NW of Manantenina village; 14°27′21.2″ S, 49°46′29.8″ E; alt. 780 m; disturbed lowland humid forest, pitfalls; 31 May 2016; V. Soarimalala leg.; FMNH-INS 2858681 •> 30 juvs; Marojejy; 14°26′ S, 49°45′ E; alt. 700 m; 10–17 Nov. 1993; NHMD. – Toamasina • 1 ♀; Reserve Betampona, Camp Rendrirendry, 34.1 km 332° from Toamasina; 17°55.26″ S, 049°11.59″ E; alt. 390 m; general collecting in camp, rainforest; 28 Nov. 2005; Brian L. Fisher et al. leg.; coll. no. BLF 13126; CASENT 9032818 • 1 ♀; Reserve Nationale Integrale Betampona, Betampona, 35.1 km NW of Toamasina; 17°55.05″ S, 49°12.03″ E; alt. 500 m; rainforest, general collecting; 15–17 Dec. 2007; Brian L. Fisher et al. leg.; coll. no. BLF 19514; CASENT 9068298 • 1 ♀; Region Atsinanana, Reserve Naturelle Integrale, along Piste Principale (PP); 17°54.8′ S, 49°11.6′ E; alt. 400–500 m; in relatively intact lowland humid forest, pitfall 2, bucket 6; 10 Nov. 2015; Steven M. Goodman leg.; FMNH-INS SMG-19237 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; by hand; coll. no. SMG-19235; FMNH-INS 2858602 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 3, bucket 5; 11 Nov. 2015; coll. no. SMG-19246; FMNH-INS 2858597 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; coll. no. SMG-19247; FMNH-INS 2858600 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 1; 12 Nov. 2015; coll. no. SMG-19255; FMNH-INS 2858599 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 3; coll. no. SMG-19256; FMNH-INS 2858604 • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 2; coll. no. SMG-19254; FMNH-INS 2858593 • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 1; 13 Nov. 2015; coll. no. SMG-19263; FMNH-INS 2858594 • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; coll. no. SMG-19264; FMNH-INS 2858591 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 3; 15 Nov. 2015; coll. no. SMG-19271; FMNH-INS 2858603 • 1 ♀; Region Atsinanana, Reserve Naturelle Integrale, along Piste Principale (PP) between 1650 and 2550 m; 17°54.62′ S, 49°11.70′ E; alt. 460–520 m; in undisturbed lowland humid forest, pitfall 4, bucket 8; 17 Nov. 2015; Steven M. Goodman leg.; coll. no. SMG-19289; FMNH-INS 2858598 • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; bucket 11; coll. no. SMG-19291; FMNH-INS 2858590 • 1 ♀; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 5, bucket 3; coll. no. SMG-19290; FMNH-INS 2858596 • 1 ♂; same collection data as for preceding; pitfall 4, bucket 1; 21 Nov. 2015; coll. no. SMG-19313; FMNH- INS 2858592.
Remarks
We provide further locality information including the lowland forest of Betampona and lowland forests in Marojejy for this relatively widespread species of Zoosphaerium (Fig. 13A). The gigantic females of Z. neptunus are currently the largest Sphaerotheriida known, reaching the size of a tennis ball or small orange when rolled up. The juveniles of this species show swarming behavior around Andasibe (Wesener & Schütte 2010), a so far unique behavior for giant pill-millipedes.
description: Published as part of Wesener, Thomas & Sagorny, Christina, 2021, Seven new giant pill-millipede species and numerous new records of the genus Zoosphaerium from Madagascar (Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida, Arthrosphaeridae), pp. 1-48 in European Journal of Taxonomy 758 (1) on pages 37-38, DOI: 10.5852/ejt.2021.758.1423, http://zenodo.org/record/5075824