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The first record of the giant pill-millipede genus Prionobelum Verhoeff, 1924 from Thailand, with the integrative description of two species (Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida, Zephroniidae).

Authors :
Donworth P
Wesener T
Source :
Zootaxa [Zootaxa] 2024 Mar 08; Vol. 5419 (4), pp. 545-562. Date of Electronic Publication: 2024 Mar 08.
Publication Year :
2024

Abstract

Thailand hosts a very rich but underexplored giant pill-millipede (Sphaerotheriida) fauna, with 11 of its 13 species described in the last three years. Currently, all known Thai giant pill-millipedes belong to the genera Zephronia Gray, 1832 (nine species) and Sphaerobelum Verhoeff, 1924 (four species). Here we describe the first two species of the genus Prionobelum Verhoeff, 1924 (previously restricted to Vietnam and China), Prionobelum inthanonense n. sp. and P. naevium n. sp. from Thailand. The species occur at Thailands highest mountain (2500 m) Doi Inthanon and the lowland rainforests at Bang Lang National Park touching the border with Malaysia. Both species are described integratively, utilizing light microscopy, scanning electron microscopy as well as DNA barcoding. Both new species of Prionobelum differ from other Zephroniidae species, as well as from one another, by more than 20% p-distance in the COI barcoding gene suggesting that potential closer related species are still awaiting discovery.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
1175-5334
Volume :
5419
Issue :
4
Database :
MEDLINE
Journal :
Zootaxa
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
38480309
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5419.4.4