Atelomastix gibsoni Edward &amp; Harvey 2010, sp. nov.
Creators: name: Edward, Karen L.
name: Harvey, Mark S.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2010
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Arthropoda
Diplopoda
Spirostreptida
Iulomorphidae
Atelomastix
Atelomastix gibsoni

description: <i>Atelomastix gibsoni</i>, sp. nov. Figs. 7, 59, 100, 101. <b>Type material:</b> AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: holotype male, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 235 m elevation, 33°38’02”S, 120°10’55”E, hand collected under rocks, 15 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir, S. Comer (WAM T 83220). Paratypes: 3 males, 5 females, collected with holotype (WAM T 80858); 4 males, 3 females, Mount Chester, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 319 m elevation, 33°36’18”S, 120°08’34”E, hand collected under rocks, 10 September 2007, M.C. Leng (WAM T 81295); 4 males, 8 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 176 m elevation, 33°34’51”S, 120°08’17”E, hand collected under rock, 12 September 2007, M.C. Leng, J. Newell (WAM T 81299); 1 male, 6 females, Mount Desmond Lookout, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 336 m elevation, 33°36’51”S, 120°09’08”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 13 September 2007, M.C. Leng, J. Newell (WAM T 81292). <b>Other material examined:</b> AUSTRALIA: Western Australia: 1 female, collected with holotype (WAM T 80857); 4 males, 3 females, 14 juveniles, Mount Chester, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 319 m elevation, 33°36’18”S, 120°08’34”E, tullgren funnel leaf litter extraction, 24 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80994); 24 males, 24 females, Mount Chester, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 319 m elevation, 33°36’18”S, 120°08’34”E, hand collected under rocks, 10 September 2007, M.C. Leng (WAM T 80988); 10 males, 7 females, Mount Desmond Lookout, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 336 m elevation, 33°36’51”S, 120°09’08”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 16 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T80863, T80862); 10 males, 26 females, Mount Desmond Lookout, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 336 m elevation, 33°36’51”S, 120°09’08”E, tullgren funnel leaf litter extraction, 16 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80866); 13 males, 16 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 242 m elevation, 33°37’06”S, 120°09’45”E, hand collected in leaf litter, under rotting logs and bark, 15 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80851 – T 80852); 2 males, 10 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 253 m elevation, 33°36’56”S, 120°09’43”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under bark, 16 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80859 – T 80860); 17 males, 12 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 155 m elevation, 33°34’34”S, 120°08’29”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 19 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80913 – T 80914); 12 males, 7 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges South, 218 m elevation, 33°38’19”S, 120°11’16”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 28 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 88779 – T 88781, 81013); 8 males, 13 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges Mid, 152 m elevation, 33°34’45”S, 120°09’25”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 24 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 81004); 28 males, 39 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges Mid, 201 m elevation, 33°34’59”S, 120°07’36”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 28 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T81027 –81028); 41 males, 43 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges North, 279 m elevation, 33°32’35”S, 120°06’17”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 21 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80945 – T 80946); 30 males, 16 females, Archer Drive Lookout, Ravensthorpe Ranges North, 383 m elevation, 33°30’55”S, 120°02’52”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rock, 22 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80962 – T 80963); 3 males, 7 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges North, 379 m elevation, 33°31’13”S, 120°03’34”E, hand collected under rock, 23 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80976); 6 males, 20 females, Ravensthorpe Ranges North, 314 m elevation, 33°31’48”S, 120°04’20”E, hand collected in leaf litter and under rocks, 23 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80978); 1 male, Ravensthorpe Ranges North, 314 m elevation, 33°31’48”S, 120°04’20”E, tullgren funnel leaf litter extraction, 23 May 2007, M.C. Leng, M.L. Moir (WAM T 80981). <b>Etymology:</b> This species is named for Neil Gibson, who facilitated a research project in the Ravensthorpe Range in which many <i>Atelomastix</i> specimens were collected. <b>Diagnosis:</b> <i>Atelomastix gibsoni</i> differs from all other species of the genus as the male gonopod sclerite <i>b</i> is greatly enlarged distally forming a large wedge-shape that extends to overlap the broad distal hood of sclerite <i>a</i>. Sclerite <i>c</i> is reduced in size, broad sub-distally and tapering slightly to a broad slightly curved tip, with a slight concavity on the externo-lateral surface where setae are situated. <b>Description:</b> <i>Male (holotype).</i> Colour: generally chocolate-brown, legs, anal segment, and antennae light brown, mouthparts slightly lighter; prozonites chocolate brown, metazonites chocolate brown to light fawn in preserved specimens. Body: ca. 24 mm long and ca. 1.8 mm wide at collum. With 56 trunk segments, 101 pairs of legs, last 2 segments without legs. Head: with ca. 34 ocelli (Fig. 59), arranged in 6 rows (2: 7: 7: 7: 6: 5). Gonopods: anterior gonopods (Figs. 100, 101) with medium sclerotisation, 2.3 times longer than broad; sclerite <i>a</i> with swollen base that forms broad, curved distal hood that overlaps and extends beyond tip of sclerite <i>b</i>; upper distal face of sclerite <i>a</i> with 24–30 (n=2) short blunt setae; pseudoflagellum relatively short and partially visible beneath broad distal hood; sclerite <i>b</i> very broad and enlarged distally, forming a wedge shape, with 4–8 (n=2) short setae; basal process of sclerite <i>b</i> very short, 0.01 times length of main process; sclerite <i>c</i> shorter than sclerite <i>b</i>, slightly concave on externo-lateral surface, slightly tapering to blunt rounded tip, with 1 seta on interno-lateral side of sclerite <i>c</i> and 5 setae within externo-lateral concavity of sclerite <i>c</i> (n=2); subbasal setae absent where sclerites overlap and group of 10–12 (n=2) short setae sub-basally on sclerite <i>c</i>; posterior gonopods inconspicuous, small, with several small setae on interno-lateral face of each gonopod. Dimensions (mm): holotype male (paratype male, WAM T80858): length ca. 24, width ca. 1.5, L/W=16.0; sclerite <i>a</i> 0.944 / 0.419 (0.880 / 0.416), setae 24 (30); sclerite <i>b</i> 0.320 (0.294), basal process of sclerite <i>b</i> 0.01 (0.01), setae 4 (8); sclerite <i>c</i> 0.582 (0.563), setae 1+5 (1+5). <i>Female</i>. Similar to male, other than sexual characters, and slightly larger. <b>Distribution and habitat:</b> This species is known from a number of sites in the Ravensthorpe Ranges (Fig. 7) characterised by <i>Hakea, Banksia, Eucalyptus</i> woodlands and mallee heath and was found amongst leaf litter and under rotting logs, bark and rocks.
description: Published as part of <i>Edward, Karen L. &amp; Harvey, Mark S., 2010, A review of the Australian millipede genus Atelomastix (Diplopoda: Spirostreptida: Iulomorphidae) 2371, pp. 1-63 in Zootaxa 2371 (1)</i> on pages 21-22, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.2371.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/5312214