Metaphire nanaoensis truku, Chang, Chih-Han, Chuang, Shu-Chun, Wu, Jia Hsing & Chen, Jiun-Hong, 2014

Chang, Chih-Han, Chuang, Shu-Chun, Wu, Jia Hsing & Chen, Jiun-Hong, 2014, New species of earthworms belonging to the Metaphire formosae species group (Clitellata: Megascolecidae) in Taiwan, Zootaxa 3774 (4), pp. 324-332 : 327-328

Metaphire nanaoensis truku ssp. nov. Chang & Chen

( Fig. 2 )

Metaphire nanaoensis (part): Chang et al. 2008: 958, 967, Figs. 1 , 4, Tables 1, 3–4; Chang & Chen 2008: 25–27, Fig. 1 F, Table 1; Chang et al. 2009: 6, Fig. 2 F. [Chang & Chen (2008) cited the taxon as ‘ Metaphire nanaoensis subsp.’].

Type specimens. Holotype: MZNTU 14-07297 (mature), collected 2 June 2005 from Siou Lin, along the Shakadang Trail, north of the Liwu River, Hualien County, Taiwan by S.-P. Wu. Paratypes: Two specimens. MZNTU 14-07228 (mature), collected 20 April 2004 from Siou Lin, near the Dali Tribe, north of the Liwu River, Hualien County, Taiwan by C.-C. Huang; MZNTU 14-05342 (mature), collected 4 February 2003 from Siou Lin, north of the Liwu River, Hualien County, Taiwan by C.-K. Lin.

Other material examined. Seven mature specimens. MZNTU 14-00021, collected 25 August 1997 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by T.-Y. Wu; MZNTU 14-05345, collected 4 February 2003 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by C.-C. Lin; MZNTU 14-05602, collected 8 February 2003 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by C.-H. Chang; MZNTU 14-07321 and 0 7322, collected 22 September 2005 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by C.-H. Chang; MZNTU 14-07369, collected 27 December 1998 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by S.-P. Wu; MZNTU 14-07370, collected 23 July 1998 from Sioulin, Hualien County, Taiwan by S.-P. Wu.

Distribution. Northeast of the Central Mountain Range, in the region between the Heping River and the Liwu River, recorded at elevations below 1,500 m.

Etymology. Noun in apposition, after the Truku Tribe, the Taiwanese aborigines living in the Taroko area in eastern Taiwan, where the species is distributed.

DNA barcodes from type specimens. Available for MZNTU 14-07228, 14-05342 ( Table 1).

Diagnosis. Pheretimoids with lengths 195–291 mm, clitellum width 11–12 mm. Copulatory pouches present with a longitudinally swollen region covered by a lateral skin wall but no genital pads. Spermathecae four pairs in 6–9. No genital papillae in the spermathecal pore area. Testes proandric. Prostate gland lobular. Caeca simple.

Morphology. External characters. Length (mature) 195–291 mm, clitellum width 11–12 mm, segment number 81–160. Number of annuli per segment three in 5–9, five in 10–13, and three in body segments behind 17. Prostomium prolobous or epilobous. Setae 83–99 in 7, 107–115 in 20, 15–19 between male pores. First dorsal pore in 12/13. Clitellum 14–16, annular, smooth, length 8–12 mm, dorsal pore absent, setae absent. Live specimens bluish brown or dark purplish gray on dorsum, reddish brown on ventrum. Preserved specimens light brown. Spermathecal pores four pairs in 6–9, intrasegmental, between the first and second annuli, distance between the paired pores about 0.35–0.40 body circumference apart ventrally. No genital papillae in the spermathecal region. Female pore single, mid-ventral in 14. Male pores paired in 18, latero-ventral, in a longitudinally elongated copulatory pouch, with the opening of the C towards mid-ventral, bordered by a thick skin wall, with several folds on lateral side. Male pore area elongated with length about twice the length of 18, extending to the setal lines of 17 and 19, partially covered by the skin wall, with a longitudinally swollen region immediately adjacent to the skin wall throughout the male pore area, forming a smooth appearance. Genital papillae absent in the male pore area.

Internal characters. Septa 5/6–7/8 thickened, 8/9 membranous, 9/10 absent, 10/11–13/14 greatly thickened. Gizzard in 8. Intestine enlarged from 15. Intestinal caeca paired in 27, simple, extending anteriorly to 23. Oesophageal hearts enlarged in 10–13. Spermathecae four pairs in 6–9. Ampulla large, about 3 mm in length, with a duct about 1 mm in length. Spermathecal diverticulum short, beyond the middle of spermathecae, with a small oval seminal chamber on the tip. Diverticulum stalk thin, equal to the length of spermathecal stalk, slightly twisted. Meronephridia tufted, attached to the anterior face of septa 5/6 and 6/7. Ovaries paired in 13, medio-ventral, close to the 12/13 septum. Testis sacs paired in 10, oval, smooth, medio-ventral in front of 10/11. Seminal vesicles paired in 11, filling the space between septa. Prostate glands paired in 18, large, lobular, extending to 17.

Remarks. This subspecies is isolated from M. nanaoensis nanaoensis by Heping River in northeastern Taiwan, and corresponds to clade C2 of M. nanaoensis in Chang et al. (2008). M. nanaoensis nanaoensis and M. nanaoensis truku diverged by 9.0% in the COI gene (Chang et al. 2008). Morphologically, the vestiges of oval pads observed in the male pores of M. nanaoensis nanaoensis are absent in this taxon, and the longitudinally swollen region in the male pore area observed in this subspecies is thinner and less prominent in M. nanaoensis nanaoensis . The two subspecies can therefore be unambiguously distinguished by their male pores (c.f. Chang et al. 2009, Fig. 2 E&F).

Figures

FIGURE 1. Metaphire tengjhihensis sp. nov. A. Ventral view of anterior body (fp, female pore; mp, male pore; cl, clitellum). B. Spermatheca (amp, ampulla; dv, diverticulum). C. Male pore area (op, oval pad). D. Prostate gland with prostatic duct. Drawings of B, C, and D based on photographs from Fig. 32 in Chang & Chen 2008.

FIGURE 2. Metaphire nanaoensis truku ssp. nov. A. Ventral view of anterior body (fp, female pore; mp, male pore; cl, clitellum). B. Spermatheca (amp, ampulla; dv, diverticulum). C. Male pore area (sw, longitudinally swollen region). D. Prostate gland with prostatic duct. Drawings of B, C, and D based on photographs from Fig. 14 in Chang & Chen 2008.