Seven new giant pill-millipede species and numerous new records of the genus Zoosphaerium from Madagascar (Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida, Arthrosphaeridae) Author Wesener, Thomas 86DEA7CD-988C-43EC-B9D6-C51000595B47 Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig (ZFMK), Leibniz Institute for Animal Biodiversity, Section Myriapoda, Adenauerallee 160, D- 53113 Bonn, Germany. t.wesener@leibniz-zfmk.de Author Sagorny, Christina 9C89C1B7-897A-426E-8FD4-C747DF004C85 Zoological Research Museum Alexander Koenig (ZFMK), Leibniz Institute for Animal Biodiversity, Section Myriapoda, Adenauerallee 160, D- 53113 Bonn, Germany. & University of Bonn, Institute of Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, D- 53121 Bonn, Germany. csagorny@evolution.uni-bonn.de text European Journal of Taxonomy 2021 2021-07-06 758 1 1 48 http://dx.doi.org/10.5852/ejt.2021.758.1423 journal article 10.5852/ejt.2021.758.1423 de9c0c06-0e7d-44a6-a582-d41a346233f6 2118-9773 5075824 01BBC12C-E715-4393-A9F6-6EA85CB1289F Zoosphaerium masoala sp. nov. urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act: F62E0E9E-172D-4076-BD01-509AD42BAE89 Figs 2F , 3 , 10A , 11 Diagnosis The shape and position of the locking carinae, as well as the slender posterior telopods place Z. masoala sp. nov. in the Z. platylabum species-group. Zoosphaerium masoala sp. nov. differs from all other species of the group in the combination of the presence of two stridulation ribs on the male harp, slender posterior telopods in which both fingers reach almost the same length and>10 apical cones on the antenna. Etymology ‘Masoala’, noun in apposition, after the forest and peninsula of Masoala, the largest remaining area of lowland rainforest on Madagascar , for which the species described here is the first recorded giant pillmillipede species ( Fig. 3 ). Material examined Holotype MADAGASCAR – Toamasina • ♂ ; Région Sava , Parc National de Masoala , Forêt de Tampolo , 1.2 km S of Ambodiforaha village ; 15°43′45.6″ S , 49°57′49.4″ E ; alt. 15 m ; pitfall buckets, littoral forest; 11 Dec. 2015 ; V. Soarimalala leg.; coll. no. VS-2582; FMNH-INS 3195651 . Description Male BODY LENGTH. Length 23.9 mm , width of thoracic shield 14.2 mm (widest), height of thoracic shield 7.2 mm (highest). COLORATION. Head, collum, thoracic shield and tergites dark brown to black. Grooves of thoracic shield greenish, anal shield lighter brown ( Fig. 2F ). Antennae and legs green. HEAD. Eyes with more than 50 ommatidia. Antennae short, protruding back to leg 4. Length of antennomeres 1>2>3=4 =5<6. A shallow groove present on antennomere 1, disc with 33/12 apical cones. GNATHOCHILARIUM AND MANDIBLE. Not dissected. STIGMATIC PLATES. First stigmatic plate triangular, apex well-rounded, slender, curved towards coxa. Hair most abundant on apical margin ( Fig. 11C ). Fig. 10. Scanning electron micrographs of the endoterga of midbody rings. A . Zoosphaerium masoala sp. nov. , holotype (FMNH-INS 3195651). B . Z. spinopiligerum sp. nov. , holotype (FMNH-INS 3119885). Scale bars = 100 µm. Fig. 11. Zoosphaerium masoala sp. nov. , holotype (FMNH-INS 3195651). A . Left leg 9, posterior view. B . Right coxa 2 with gonopore, posterior view. C . Right coxa 1 with stigmatic plate, posterior view. D . Left anterior gonopod, anterior view. E . Left anterior gonopod, lateral view. F . Left anterior gonopod, posterior view. G . Right posterior telopod, posterior view. H . Right posterior telopod, anterior view. Abbreviations: as = apical spine; cl = claw; cr-t = crenulated teeth; cx= coxa; fe = femur; gp = gonopore; pof = postfemur; pref = prefemur; s-ps = sclerotized spots; sr = stridulation rib; st = stigmatic plate; syn = syncoxite; ta = tarsus; ti = tibia; vs = ventral spines. Roman numerals indicate telopoditomeres. Scale bars = 1 mm. PLEURITES. First pleurite extending slightly posteriorly in a long, thin process. COLLUM. Margins covered with a few short hairs, central part glabrous. THORACIC SHIELD. Surface like those of tergites, glabrous. TERGITES. Smooth and glabrous, no small pits. Paratergites projecting slightly posteriorly. ENDOTERGUM. Inner section with numerous short spines and isolated bristles. Between marginal ridge and inner area a single row of sparse large, circular cuticular impressions, distance between impressions larger than their diameter. Marginal brim wavy towards inner area. Externally 1 or 2 rows of marginal bristles. Bristles scaly, of medium length, longest reaching slightly above tergite margin ( Fig. 10A ). ANAL SHIELD. Rounded, neither bell-shaped nor tapered, covered with numerous short setae. Ventral side of anal shield with two black locking carinae, located close to laterotergites. Anterior carina small and posterior carina 3 times as long as anterior carina. LEGS. Leg 1 with 1 ventral spine, leg 2 with 2–4, leg 3 with 3 or 4. First two leg pairs without an apical spine, spine present on leg 3. Leg pairs 4–21 with 7 or 8 ventral spines and an apical spine. On leg 9, femur 2.4 and tarsus 4.2 times as long as wide. All podomeres with setae ( Fig. 11A ). Male sexual characters GONOPORE. Covered with a single undivided, rounded, apically membranous, basally sclerotized plate, covering ¼ of surface of coxa. Gonopore located basally on joint ( Fig. 11B ). ANTERIOR TELOPODS. Harp with two stridulation ribs, mesal rib smaller than lateral one, both ribs well developed, located in mesal corner ( Fig. 11D ). First podomere 1.1 times as wide as long. Second podomere process lobe-like and slightly curved, with rounded edges, protruding up to half of third podomere height, apically with sclerotized spots. Third podomere long, as long as first; cavity mesally with numerous sclerotized spots and three thin, sclerotized spines; one sclerotized spot located close to tip; laterally with up to 12 crenulated teeth. Podomeres 1–3 covered on both sides with numerous long, isolated hairs. POSTERIOR TELOPODS. Movable finger with a well-rounded tip, tapering towards tip; hollowed-out inner margin without lobes but with 5 sclerotized spines, 2 located apically, 2 at midpoint and 1 basally ( Fig. 11H ). Posterior aspect of movable finger with ca 14 small sclerotized teeth ( Fig. 11G ). Movable finger slightly longer than fixed finger, the latter slender (4 times as long as wide), apically curved towards former. Fixed finger basally with a single spine, at margin with numerous sclerotized spots. First podomeres almost glabrous, movable and immovable finger covered on both sides with numerous long, isolated hairs, only tips of chela glabrous. Female Unknown. Distribution and ecology This species is currently known only from the vast lowland rainforests of the Masoala Peninsula on the east coast ( Fig. 3 ). Remarks Despite several attempts, no DNA could be extracted from the male holotype . Therefore, its degree of similarity to the two much larger females known and sequenced from the Masoala area ( KY399024 and KY399025 ) could not be assessed (see Fig. 1 ).