Endonura centaurea ( Cassagnau & Péja, 1979 ), Cassagnau & Peja, 1979

Smolis, Adrian, 2016, On the identity of some poorly known species of the genus Endonura Cassagnau, 1979 (Collembola, Neanuridae, Neanurinae), Zootaxa 4173 (3), pp. 237-250 : 241-244

Endonura centaurea ( Cassagnau & Péja, 1979)

Figs 8–12 , Tab. 2

Neanura (Endonura) centaurea: Cassagnau & Péja 1979: 216 .

Type material. Syntypes: subadult female and 2 juveniles on slides, Greece, Mount Ossa , leg. P. Cassagnau, coll. P. Cassagnau ( MNHN).

Diagnosis. Habitus typical of the genus Endonura . Dorsal tubercles present and well developed. 2+2 eyes unpigmented. Buccal cone short, labrum nonogival. Head with chaetae A, B, C, D, F and G. Chaetae O and E absent. Tubercles Cl and Af separate. Tubercles Dl and (L+So) on head with 6 and 9 chaetae respectively. Tubercles Di on th. I absent. Tubercles De on th. II and III with 3 and 4 chaetae respectively. Tubercles L on abd. III and IV with 3 and 6 chaetae respectively. Abd. IV and V with 8 and 3 tubercles respectively. Claw without inner tooth. Tibiotarsi with chaetae B4 and B5 short.

Redescription. Habitus typical of the genus. Body length of syntypes (without antennae): 0.95–1.25 mm. Colour of the body white. 2+2 small unpigmented eyes ( Figs 8–9 ).

Types of dorsal ordinary chaetae. Macrochaetae Ml thickened, relatively long, arc-like or straight, narrowly sheathed, feebly serrated, apically pointed or rarely rounded ( Figs 8–9, 11 ); macrochaetae Mc and Mcc thickened, straight, pointed or apically rounded; mesochaetae and microchaetae short, thin and pointed.

a) Cephalic chaetotaxy––dorsal side.

b) Cephalic chaetotaxy––ventral side.

Group Number of chaetae Vi 6 Vea 4 Vem 3 Vep 3 Labium 11, 0x

c) Chaetotaxy of antennae.

d) Postcephalic chaetotaxy.

Terga Legs

Di De Dl L Scx2 Cx Tr Fe T th. I 1 2 1 - 0 3 6 13 19 th. II 3 2+s 3+s+ms 3 2 7 6 12 19 th. III 3 3+s 3+s 3 2 8 6 11 18

Sterna

abd. I 2 3+s 2 2 VT: 4

abd. II 2 3+s 2 3 Ve: 4–5 Ve1 - Present

abd. III 2 3+ s 2 3 Vel:5 Fu:5–6me 4mi abd. IV 2 2+ s 3 6 Vel: 4 Vec: 2 Vei: 2 Vl: 4 abd. V (3+3) 5+s Ag: 3 Vl: 1 L': 1 abd. VI 7 Ve: 14 An: 2mi Head. Buccal cone short with labrum nonogival. Labrum chaetotaxy 2/2, 4. Labium with four basal, three distal and four lateral chaetae, papillae x absent ( Fig. 10 ). Maxilla styliform, mandible thin tridentate. Chaetotaxy of antennae as in Tab. 2 c. Apical vesicle distinct, trilobed. S-chaetae of ant.IV of medium length and moderately thickened. Chaetotaxy of head as in Tab. 2 a, b, and Figs 8–9 . Head with chaetae A, B, C, D, F and G. Chaetae O and E absent. Tubercles Cl and Af separate. Tubercle Af with small nonreticular area between chaetae A and B ( Fig. 9 ). Chaeta D free. Tubercle Dl with 6 chaetae, chaeta Dl3 present. Tubercle (L+So) with 9 chaetae, chaeta So2 absent. Elementary tubercles BE and CD present ( Fig. 9 ). Chaeta A shorter than B. Chaetae Ocp longer than A.

Thorax, abdomen, legs. Body s-chaetae thin and smooth, shorter than nearby macrochaetae ( Figs 8, 12 ). Chaetotaxy of th. and abd. as in Tab. 2 d and in Figs 8, 11 . Tubercles Di on th. I absent. Tubercles De on th. II and III with 3 and 4 chaetae respectively. Chaetae De2 on th. II–III and De3 on th. III connected with tubercle De. Chaetae De3 on abd. I–III connected with tubercle De ( Fig. 8 ). Chaetae De2 on th. III and abd. I‒III slightly longer than De3. The line of chaetae De1‒chaeta s perpendicular to dorsomedian line on abd I–III. Furca rudiment with 4 microchaetae ( Fig. 12 ). Abd. IV and V with 8 and 3 tubercles respectively, tubercles Di on abd. V fused. Chaetae L' and Vl on abd. V present. No cryptopygy. Chaetotaxy of legs as in Tab. 2 d. Claw without inner tooth. Tibiotarsi with chaetae B4 and B5 short.

Discussion. E. centaurea is most similar to Endonura saleri Fanciulli & Dallai, 2008 (described from Northeastern Italy), resembling that species in having an unpigmented body and missing O and E chaetae on head. Nevertheless, both taxa are readily distinguished by different number of chaetae Dl on head (in centaurea 6, in saleri 5), presence/absence of pigment on eyes (in centaurea absent, in saleri present), presence/absence of free chaetae De on th. III and abd. I–III (in centaurea absent, in saleri present), number of chaetae (De+Dl+L) on abd. V (in centaurea 6–7, in saleri 8) and presence/absence of microchaetae on furca rudimentary (in centaurea present, in saleri absent).

Figures

FIGURES 8 – 12. Endonura centaurea: 8, head, thorax and abd. I, dorsal and lateral chaetotaxy; 9, central area of head; 10, chaetotaxy of labium and group Vi; 11, dorsal chaetotaxy of abd. IV – VI; 12, furca rudiment.

Tables

TABLE 2. Chaetotaxy of Endonura centaurea:

Tubercle	Number of chaetae	Types of chaetae	Names of chaetae
Cl	4	Ml Mc	F G
Af	8	Ml Mc me	B A, C, D
Oc	3	Ml Mc	Ocm, Ocp Oca
Di	2	Ml Mc	Di1 Di2
De	2	Ml Mc	De1 De2
Dl	6	Ml Mc mi	Dl1, Dl5 Dl3, Dl4 Dl2, Dl6
(L+So)	9	Ml Mc me	L1, L4, So1 L2, L3, So3 So4–6