Megaphyllum (Cyphobrachyiulus) digitatum Lazányi & Korsós, 2012

Lazányi, Eszter, Vagalinski, Boyan & Korsós, Zoltán, 2012, The millipede genus Megaphyllum Verhoeff, 1894 in the Balkan Peninsula, with description of new species (Myriapoda: Diplopoda: Julida: Julidae), Zootaxa 3228, pp. 1-47 : 34-37

Megaphyllum (Cyphobrachyiulus) digitatum Lazányi & Korsós sp. n.

Figs 69–83

Holotype ( HNHM): 1 3 (in head and four parts), Greece, 2009/59, Arkadia county, Aroania Mts., Zarelia, spruce forest and grassland SE of the village, 1310m, N37°55.386’ E22°14.191’, 0 7.04.2009, leg. LD, JK & DM.

Diagnosis. Species of the subgenus Cyphobrachyiulus as defined by Verhoeff (1903) and Strasser (1974). It shares the following similarities with M. euphorbiarum and M. argolicum , the most similar species: having a distinct hump on the second leg-pair’s coxa and basically the same structure for the promere and opisthomere. Differs FIGURES 53–63. Megaphyllum danyii Lazányi & Korsós sp. n. from Greece, the Peloponnese, Elliniko, male holotype. (53) Antenna and (54) gnathochilarium (scale bars: 0.5mm); (55) first leg-pair, anterior view (scale bar: 0.1mm); (55) telson, ventrolateral view; (57) second leg-pair, caudal view (setae omitted); penis from (58) lateral and (59) caudal views; (60) left pleurotergum of the 7th body ring, ventro-lateral view (scale bar: 0.25mm); (61) left, anterior walking leg from the 24th body ring (seate omitted); (62) both in situ gonopods, caudal view; (63) right in situ gonopods, mesal view (scale bars for the line drawings: 0.2mm). Abbreviations: ca: canal, cm: coarse margin on promere, f: femur, fl: flagellum, g: groove, gr: setose groove; pf: postfemur, ll: left lamella, lp: lateral process, ly: layer, r: riffle, rl: right lamella, scp: caudal process of the solenomere, t: tibia, P: promere.

from M. euphorbiarum and M. argolicum by being larger (body length of adult males 29.9mm versus 21–22.3mm ( M. euphorbiarum ) and 22.5–25.2mm ( M. argolicum ) height 1.9mm versus 1.4–1.75mm ( M. euphorbiarum ) and 1.8mm ( M. argolicum )); being darker as adult males are dark below ozopore level; having finger-like projections on the promere and having longer proximal process and longer, more curved distal process on the opisthomere. The promere is bent in the same way for M. digitatum and M. euphorbiarum versus M. argolicum as the promere of the latter is not bent along its lateral margin.

Etymology. Named after a unique gonopod feature for the genus: medial margin of promere with a row of finger-like projections.

Description. Measurements: adult male in stadium XI, body ring number 49+1+T, length 29.9mm, height 1.9mm, ocelli R42+L41. Antennal articles and gnathochilarium as shown on Figs 69 and 70. Two frontal, four supralabral and 21 labral bristles present. Colour: blackish brown with two bright dot-lines dorsally. Sculpture: collum laterally with 2–3 vague striae, metazonites densely striated, posterior margin with long setae, openings of repugnatorial glands white, immediately behind suture. Telson: anal valves full with long setae, preanal process long, pointed, setose, subanal sclae triangle, pointed, setose (Fig. 71).

Male sexual characters: mandibles with protruding lobe; first leg-pair forming a simple hook with no protrusions (Fig. 72); second leg-pair with two simple pads on postfemur and tibia (pf and t on Fig 73), hump on the coxa present (c and h on Fig. 73); penis stout, apically slightly tapering, with an apical opening (o on Figs 74–76); pleurotergum on the 7th body ring protruding like a simple shovel (Fig. 77); walking legs with three simple pads on femur, postfemur and tibia (f, pf and t on Fig. 78). Gonopods (Figs 79–83): promere (Fig. 82 and P on Figs 79–81) bent, with finger-like projections (fs on Figs 79–82) on the second third of mesal margin, basally with a short, oblique ridge (r on Fig. 81–82). Flagellum long, thin (fl on Figs 81–82); opisthomere with two apical processes, both emerging and directed caudally, reaching almost to the same height. Proximal process (p p on Figs 79–81and 83) pointing slightly in mesal direction, distal (caudalmost) process (p d on Figs 79–81 and 83) bent anteriorly. Opisthomere is a bit shorter than promere. The opisthomere is located into a groove formed by the promere’s ridge (g on Fig. 81–82) facing it with a specially surfaced hump on the opisthomere’s anterior surface (h on Fig. 83).

Females unknown.

Remarks. The type locality of the holotype lays close (in a straight line) to the new collecting localites of M. euphorbiarum , but at a different elevation and in a completely different habitat. Although only one male of the new species was found, we do not consider it as an aberration of M. euphorbiarum nor of M. argolicum , because all diagnostic characters are symmetrical on both sides, involving more gonopod parts. It cannot be individual variation either, because the difference from con(sub)generic species is as remarkable as the interspecific variation.