Rhysida jonesi, Lewis, 2002

Lewis, JGE, 2002, their adjacent islets (Chilopoda: Scolopendromorpha), Journal of Natural History 36, pp. 79-106 : 88-91

Rhysida jonesi sp. nov.

(®gures 15±21)

Derivatio nominis

After Dr Carl Jones, co-leader of the expedition and Director of the Mauritius Wildlife Foundation and the Mauritius Project of the Jersey Wildlife Preservation Trust.

Diagnosis

Tergites without or with very short paramedian sutures, marginate from tergite 11 or 13. Prefemur of end leg with two ventrolateral, one medial and one dorsomedial spine.

Material studied

Mauritius. Round Island . Spms 1 and 2, 34 and 25 mm, crevices in tuOE rock, SE facing slope, P. Daszak and S. J. Lewis, 1 November 1995 . Spms 3 (holotype), and, 37 and 35 mm, the same, P. Daszak and J. Cottingham. Spm 5, 57 mm, bases of dead leaves on Latania palm, P. Daszak, 3 November 1995 .

Description

Colour of holotype in life. Antennae mustard brown, head greyish orange, tergite light brown, trunk dark brown with deep violet sheen. Last tergite brownish orange. Legs yellowish white tinged bluish green. End legs light yellow banded greyish turquoise. After 2 years preservation in ethanol: head and trunk greyish turquoise, end legs greyish blue. Other specimens vary to dark green with end legs deep turquoise.

Antennomeres 20±22, the three basal glabrous dorsally but setae anterolaterally on each side (®gure 15). Ventrally the basal two glabrous the third with the basal 20% glabrous (27% in spm 1). The setae short, ®ne and dense in irregular longitudinal rows.

Forcipular coxosternal tooth plates each with four main teeth, a very small inner fth tooth present in the type but not in all specimens. The basal sulci meeting at an angle of 115 ss, 100±112 ss in other specimens. Process of femoroid with two lateral teeth (®gure 16). Tergites smooth, with very short posterior paramedian sutures, marginate from 13 (11 in spm 1). Tergite 21 without posterior median depression ®gure 17). Sternites smooth, with very short anterior and posterior paramedian sutures (®gure 18) but these very di cult to detect. Sternite 21 a little wider than long, the sides converging posteriorly, the corners rounded, the posterior margin concave (®gure 19).

Coxopleural process short, with two apical and one lateral subapical spine and one lateral spine. No dorsal spine. Atypically the holotype has one apical and two subapicals on the right (®gure 20), spm 4 has an additional internal lateral spine ®gure 19), spm 5 has only two apical and no lateral spines on the right.

End legs very long. In spm 4 they are 40% of the body length (end legs 14 mm, trunk 35 mm). Prefemoral spines; ventrolateral two, medial one, dorsomedial one ®gures 17 and 20). No corner spine.

Legs 1±20 with one femoral spine on leg 1, one tibial on legs 1±3/4, two tarsal spines on 1±18, one tarsal on 19 and 20.

Remarks

Rhysida jonesi is one of a group of seven species with tergite paramedian sutures reduced or absent. In R. stuhlmanni Kraepelin, 1903 and R. intermedia Attems, 1910 from Africa and R. afra (Peters, 1855) from Africa, India and Nepal only tergite is marginate. In the remaining four species the tergites are marginate at least from 19. Of these, the South American R. brasiliensis Kraepelin, 1903 has two coxopleural end spines and no spines on the end leg prefemur. R. ceylonica Gravely, 1912 from Sri Lanka and India has two coxopleural end spines, nil or one lateral spines and a single minute spine on the end leg prefemur. In R. jonesi there are three coxopleural end spines and a lateral spine and the end leg prefemur has two

IGS 15±21. Rhysida jonesi sp. nov. (15) Head and basal antennomeres, holotype; (16) forcipular coxosternal toothplates and process of right femoroid, holotype; (17) tergite 21 and end leg prefemora and part of right leg 20, dorsal view, holotype; (18) sternite 9, spm 4; (19) terminal segments ventral view, spm 4 (pores are shown only on distal half of coxopleuron); (20) terminal segments ventral view, holotype; (21) terminal segments and end leg prefemora, oblique ventral view, holotype. Scale lines 51 mm.

ventrolateral, one medial and one dorsomedial spine. Rhysida longicarinulata Khanna and Tripathi, 1986 has`a very pronounced paramedian lateral carina’. Khanna and Tripathi’s (1986) ®gure 2 shows these carinae to be in the position the paramedian sutures and they should be re-examined. In any event,. longicarinulata is not closely related to R. jonesi . Material exmained

Mauritius. One spm, 25 mm, damp soil under stones, sugar cane ®eld, N bank Tamarin River, Tamarin, 15 October 1995 .

Remarks

Similar to R. longipes , but with two tarsal spines on legs 1±16. Tergites marginate from 18. Coxopleural processes, which have been damaged and repaired, lack spines. End legs wanting.