Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae, Jordana, Rafael, Fadrique, Floren & Baquero, Enrique, 2012

Jordana, Rafael, Fadrique, Floren & Baquero, Enrique, 2012, The collembolan fauna of Maestrazgo caves (Teruel, Spain) with description of three new species, Zootaxa 3502, pp. 49-71 : 58-63

Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae sp. nov.

Figs 20 –37, Tabs 1 & 2

Diagnosis. Unpigmented; 1 + 1 eyes; trichobothria A, B and C forming straight line towards hind part; Ant/head = 1.5; Ant IV subdivided into 5 subsegments; all claws with inner tooth, fore and mid empodia with corner tooth, and empodial filaments overtopping tip of corresponding claw; anterior lobe of tenaculum with 2 apical setae; manubrium with 6 + 6 setae; dens with 3, 2, 1, 0, 1 anterior setae, posterior side with 2 spines and 3 inner spines; Abd VI without cuticular spines, 5 circumanal setae broadened with wings and with subbasal serration, appendices anales rod-like gradually broadening to distal part with apical and subapical serration.

Type locality. St. Victor Cave, Fortanete, Teruel. UTM Coordinates (ED50): 30TO710974/ 4480491, 1605 m asl.

Type material. Holotype: female on slide T 1-01, 12.xi.2011, temperature = 4.95 ºC; HR = 91.78. Paratypes (same data as Holotype): 2 females on slides T1-02 and T1-03, and 1 male on slide T1-04. F. Fadrique leg. Holotype and allotype paratype deposited in MZNA; 2 paratypes in the Barcelona Natural Science Museum.

Description. Female: body length 0.9–1.01 mm (male 0.85 mm) without pigmentation.

Head ( Fig. 20 ): eyes 1 + 1, unpigmented. Labium similar to P. maestrazgoensis sp. nov. Labral setal number: a, 4; m, 5; p, 5; prelabral: 6. Clypeal area: 6 rows (from a to f); rows a, b and c with axial seta. Inter-antennal area: rows α without axial setae, row β with axial seta. Dorsal area: 4 rows (from A to D) with 4 axial setae in rows A, B, C and D. Spine-like setae on head absent, however, setae of dorsal area slightly broader at their base.

Antennae. 1,5 times as long as head. Antennal legth 597 µm. Length ratio of antennal segments I: II: III: IV = 1: 2: 3.2: 8.8 ( Fig. 21 ). Antennal segment I with 7 setae, subapical posterior one minute. Ant II with 15 simple setae. Ant III: not swollen nor in subbasal neither in median part; with 15 setae and 2-rods sense organ, microsensillum Aai, setae Api short and Ap curved, setae Ape, Ae and Ai straight ( Figs 22–23 ). Ant IV subdivided into 5 subsegments. Subsegmental formula: 1 + 3 + 1. Ant IV bears the following whorls of setae: 5 on basal subsegment (BA, BM1–BM3, BB), 3 on median subsegments each and 5 on apical subsegment (AI–AIII, M1–M2) (after Vargovitsh, 2009) ( Fig. 24 ).

Legs ( Figs 25–27 ). Foreleg: precoxae 1, 2 and coxa with 1, 0, 1 setae respectively; trochanter with 2 anterior and 2 posterior setae; femur with 14 setae, a4 twisted perpendicularly to the longitudinal axis of the segment; tibiotarsus: with 3 setae FP (FPe, FPae, FPpe), and 1 seta FS; whorl I with 9 setae; whorls II–III with 8 setae each, whorls IV–V with 7 and 8 setae; pretarsus with 1 anterior and 1 posterior setae. Claw ( Fig. 28 ) with inner tooth and 2 pairs of lateral teeth in ventro-posterior position (2 basal and 2 distal), tunica absent. Empodium thin, with corner tooth in subbasal half, and with long apical filament exceeding tip of claw; claw 4.5 times shorter than tibiotarsus. Mid leg: precoxae I, II and coxa with 1, 1, 2 setae respectively, and with 1 small spine on coxa; trochanter with 3 simple setae and 1 anterior trochanteral organ; femur with 15 setae, 2 posterior ones minute; tibiotarsus with 3 setae FP and seta FSa; whorl I with 9 setae, whorls II-IV with 8 setae in different arrangement, whorl V with 7 setae. Claw ( Fig. 29 ) broader than in foreleg, with inner tooth and 2 pairs of lateral teeth, tunica absent. Empodium broader than in foreleg, with corner tooth in subbasal part, and apical filament exceeding tip of claw; claw 5.5 times shorter than tibiotarsus. Hind leg: precoxae with 1, 1 setae and coxa with 3 setae and 1 small spine; trochanter with anterior trochanteral organ, 3 anterior and 1 posterior simple setae; femur with 13 setae and 2 posterior setae. Tibiotarsus with 3 setae FP and seta FSa; whorls I–V as in mid tibiotarsus. Claw ( Fig. 30 ) broader than in fore and mid leg, with inner tooth and 2 pairs of lateral teeth, with tunica. Empodium broader than in other legs, without tooth in the middle, 1 or 2 denticles at the end, and apical filament exceeding tip of claw; claw 7.5 times shorter than tibiotarsus. Length ratio of tibiotarsi I: II: III = 1: 1.1: 1.3.

FIGURES 31–37. Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae sp. nov.: 31, body chaetotaxy; 32, tenaculum; 33–34, dens (external view; *E6 lacks in one of dens); 35, mucro; 36–37, Abd VI.

Ventral tube with 1 + 1 apical curved setae. Tenaculum (Fig. 32): each ramus with 3 sclerotic teeth and a soft basal process; anterior lobe with 2 apical setae, one terminal and other subterminal; both lobes (anterior and posterior) at the same level.

Furca. Manubrium (Fig. 31) with 6 + 6 posterior setae. Dens (Figs 33–34): anterior side with 4 groups of setae (3, 2, 1, 0, 1); ve1A, B, C as normal setae, ve2B-C, and ve3C long and appressed setae to the cuticle, ve6B normal seta; posterior side with 2 spines (E1, E2), E1 as well developed terminal spine, E2 smaller, sometimes with seta-like tip; 3 internal spines (L1, L4 and L5) and 10-11 normal setae (E6 sometimes asymmetrically absent). Mucro (Fig. 35) constricted on anterior side, both edges gutter-like serrated finishing almost at same level before a more or less globular tip. Dens/Mucro ratio = 1.8 (90 µm /50µm).

Great abdomen (Fig. 31): meso- and metathorax with normal dorsal setae, 1 neosminthuroid seta on Th II and III in row a and 3 setae in row m. Trichobothria A, B and C forming a straight line towards hind part. Abd I row a with 5 setae, rows m and p with 3 setae. Seta a1 placed after A trichobothrium, p placed below B trichobotrium, seta b1 between B and C trichobotria, seta c1 and c2 below C trichobothrium. Posterior lateral complex with 4 + 3 and furca base complex with 8 setae. Posterior dorsal complex with about 24 setae arranged in 3 rows. Ventral complex with 2 setae.

Abd V segment with trichobothrium D in row a, setae of row a absent, 3 setae in row p.

Abd VI (Fig. 36–37): cuticular spines absent; 5 circumanal setae broadened with wings and with subbasal serration (a1, a2, a3, av1’and av1). Seta A1 shorter than seta a0 and DL2; appendices anales (av5) rod-like, gradually broadening to distal part, with apical and subapical serration.

Bionomy and distribution. All specimens were collected from water surface, in dark zone of St. Victor Cave, about 30 m deep in isothermal zone. In the cave it co-occurred with P. maestrazgoensis sp. nov.

Etymology. The new species is named after the Roman name of Cantavieja, locality near the cave entrance.

Remarks. P. cantavetulae sp. nov. belongs to the Pygmarrhopalites group without spines on the head (21 species) and Ant IV with 5 segments. Among them, only 15 species have 2 external and 3 internal spines on dens: P. alticola Yosii, 1970 , P. b i m u s Christiansen, 1966. P. furcatus Stach, 1945 and P. postumicus Stach, 1945 lack inner tooth unguis on leg I; P. ornatus Stach, 1945 and P. sericus Gisin, 1947 lack corner tooth on the unguiculus of Leg I; P. leonardwoodensis Zeppelini, Taylor and Slay, 2009 has the apical filament of unguiculus on leg I not longer than unguis; P. b e n i t u s (Folsom, 1896) Mills, 1934, P. chiangdaoensis Nayrolles, 1990 , P. l e w i s i Christiansen and Bellinger, 1996, P. pavo Christiansen and Bellinger, 1996 , P. plethorasari Zeppelini, Taylor and Slay, 2009 , P. pygmaeus (Wankel, 1860) Stach, 1918 and P. whitesidei Jacot, 1938 have two setae on corpus of tenaculum; and only P. cantavetulae sp. nov. has anal flaps with 5 setae expanded and with spinulation. P. b i m u s, P. leonardwoodensis , P. l e w i s i, P. plethorasari , P. postumicus and P. pygmaeus have a flat with apex and edges brushlike female annal appendix; P. chiangdaoensis , P. furcatus and P. o r n a t u s have bifid or trifid and serrate female annal appendix.

Only 11 species of Pygmarrhopalites have setae dentate at their base on anal flaps. Among them only 2 species have 5 or more spiny setae on anal flaps: P. nigripes Park & Kang, 2007 and P. cantavetulae sp. nov. P. n i g r i p e s has 4 external dental spines, 7 subsegments on Ant IV and 9 spines on head, while the new species has only 2 external dental spines, 5 subsegments on Ant IV and no spines on head.

Figures

FIGURE 20. Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae sp. nov., head chaetatoxy.

FIGURES 21 – 24. Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae sp. nov.: 21, antennal segments; 22, detail of guard setae of sensory organ; 23, Antennal segments I, II and III; 24, Antennal segment IV.

FIGURES 25 – 30. Pygmarrhopalites cantavetulae sp. nov.: 25, foreleg (posterior view); 26, midleg (posterior view); 27, hind leg (posterior view); 28, claw of foreleg; 29, claw of mid leg; 30, claw of hind leg.