Balkanodesminus, Antić & Vagalinski & Stoev & Akkari, 2022

Antic, Dragan, Vagalinski, Boyan, Stoev, Pavel & Akkari, Nesrine, 2022, A review of the cavernicolous Trichopolydesmidae (Diplopoda, Polydesmida) from the Carpathian-Balkan arch and the Rhodope Mountains, with descriptions of two new genera and three new species, ZooKeys 1097, pp. 1-46 : 1

Genus Balkanodesminus gen. nov.

Type species.

Bacillidesmus bulgaricus Strasser, 1962, by present designation.

Diagnosis.

Differs from all European Trichopolydesmidae by the presence of a characteristic acropodite of the gonopods divided into two parallel and mostly meso-laterally oriented branches, where solenomeral branch is transversely bipartite, consisting of slender solenomere and well-developed distal solenomeral process. The most similar genus is Rhodopodesmus gen. nov., but it differs from Balkanodesminus gen. nov. and all other European Trichopolydesmidae by the presence of trifid solenomeral branch (for more details see under Rhodopodesmus gen. nov.).

In addition, the diagnosis can be amended with the following combination of characters: small size (3.7-5.2 mm), 19 body rings (including telson), sensilla basiconica on antennomere 6 partially exposed outside the pit, hypoproct with more than two long distal setae, paraprocts with more than 2+2 long setae, metaterga with 4-8 irregular rows of trichoid setae.

Name.

The new genus is named after the Balkan Mountains, its type locality, in combination with the suffix - desminus, as a diminutive of - desmus, the common suffix in Polydesmida , referring to the small size of its species, in contrast to confamiliar Dinaric Balkanodesmus Antić & Reip, in Antić et al. 2014, the largest Balkan trichopolydesmid. The name is a masculine noun.

Included species.

Balkanodesminus bulgaricus (Strasser, 1962) gen. nov., comb. nov. ex Bacillidesmus

Balkanodesminus dentatus (Strasser, 1966a) gen. nov., comb. nov., stat. nov. ex Bacillidesmus

Balkanodesminus dentatoides gen. nov. et sp. nov.

Balkanodesminus serbicus gen. nov. et sp. nov.