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Springtails ( Collembola) are a group of arthropods that are found in terrestrial ecosystems throughout the world. Two species complexes, Tomocerus ocreatus and T. nigrus complexes, are widely distributed in the southern and northern parts of eastern China, respectively. There is a poor understanding of the species diversity within these complexes and of the factors affecting their diversification and dispersal. Species delimitation using a general mixed Yule coalescent model and a Bayesian multilocus approach recognized 22 DNA-based species. This supports the presence of extensive cryptic diversity in species that are geographically widespread. In addition to genetic differences, we discovered corresponding morphological differences in jumping organs among the major clades. Analyses of divergence times and historical biogeographical processes revealed that ocreatus and nigrus complexes originated in southern and northern China, respectively. We estimated their divergence at 27.8-44.9 Mya during the Eocene- Oligocene, at the time when the transmeridional Qinling- Dabie Mountains uplifted and formed the north-south geographical boundary of eastern China. Diversification analyses suggest that the subsequent orogenesis of the Qinghai- Tibetan Plateau in western China had little impact on divergences within the two species complexes so that they maintained their geographical patterns from the Paleogene to the present day. Our findings also point to a potentially important influence of the Qinling- Dabie Mountains on patterns of animal speciation and distribution in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thirteen species of the genusPogonognathellusPaclt, 1944 have been reported worldwide, two from East Asia. Two new species of the genus from Jilin Province, northeast China are described here.Pogonognathellus heterochrossp. nov. is characterized by its unique body colour.Pogonognathellus maisp. nov. is most similar toPogonognathellus beckeri(Börner, 1909) but differs from it mainly in maxilla and tenaculum. A key to the East Asian species is provided, and the confusion among these species is discussed.http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:902CD044-0A58-4CCF-A1B1-449C9DE10938 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tomocerids are world-widely distributed, but were seldom reported from tropics. In the present paper, three new species of Tomocerus Nicolet are described from Hainan and Yunnan Provinces, tropical zone of China. All three species have compound-type dental spines and belong to Tomocerus ocreatus species-group. Tomocerus tropicus sp. nov. resembles Tomocerus pseudocreatus Yu, but differs from the latter in mesothoracic macrochaetotaxy, manubrial dorsal scales and denticles on the dental spines. Tomocerus nan sp. nov. resembles Tomocerus virgatus Yu, but differs from the latter in colour pattern, cephalic dorsal macrochaetotaxy, manubrial dorsal scales and denticles on the dental spines. Tomocerus nabanensis sp. nov. resembles T. postantennalis Yu, Zhang Deharveng, Tomocerus dong Yu Li and Tomocerus deharvengi Yu Li, but differs from the three species in PAO, cephalic and tergal dorsal macrochaetotaxy and tenent hairs. Our studies including the present work indicate the importance of future survey on Tomocerinae in and near tropics where diversity of this group was historically underestimated.

Three new species of Monodontocerus are described from caves in southern China: M. absens sp. nov. is characterized by its cephalic chaetotaxy and the absence of chaetae from the tenaculum; M. mulunensis sp. nov. is characterized by a combination of characters including chaetotaxy, foot complex and furca; M. trigrandis sp. nov. is different from other species in the formula of dental spines and the reduction of the ungual teeth. A key to the species of Monodontocerus is provided. Potential diagnostic characters for this genus are proposed. Troglomorphy and interspecific variability are discussed. Pseudopores and the dorsal disto-lateral chaeta on the manubrium are introduced as new taxonomic characters for Tomocerinae.