02083nas a2200217 4500008004100000022001400041245004600055210004200101260001500143300000800158490000700166520148200173100002001655700002301675700002301698700002301721700002201744700002101766700002301787856005501810 2021 eng d a2045-232200aThe first true millipede—1306 legs long0 afirst true millipede—1306 legs long c16/12/2021 a1-80 v113 a

The name “millipede” translates to a thousand feet (from mille “thousand” and pes “foot”). However, no millipede has ever been described with more than 750 legs. We discovered a new record-setting species of millipede with 1,306 legs, Eumillipes persephone, from Western Australia. This diminutive animal (0.95 mm wide, 95.7 mm long) has 330 segments, a cone-shaped head with enormous antennae, and a beak for feeding. A distant relative of the previous record holder, Illacme plenipes from California, it belongs to a different order, the Polyzoniida. Discovered 60 m below ground in a drill hole created for mineral exploration, E. persephone possesses troglomorphic features; it lacks eyes and pigmentation, and it has a greatly elongated body—features that stand in stark contrast to its closest surface-dwelling relatives in Australia and all other members of its order. Using phylogenomics, we found that super-elongation (> 180 segments) evolved repeatedly in the millipede class Diplopoda. The striking morphological similarity between E. persephone and I. plenipes is a result of convergent evolution, probably for locomotion in similar soil habitats. Discovered in the resource-rich Goldfields-Esperance region and threatened by encroaching surface mining, documentation of this species and conservation of its habitat are of critical importance.

1 aMarek, Paul, E.1 aBuzatto, Bruno, A.1 aShear, William, A.1 aMeans, Jackson, C.1 aBlack, Dennis, G.1 aHarvey, Mark, S.1 aRodriguez, Juanita uhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-021-02447-002470nas a2200229 4500008004100000022001400041245006700055210006700122260001500189300000900204490000600213520180200219653001502021653001702036653001602053653001302069100002302082700002202105700002002127700002002147856007302167 2021 eng d a2399-342100aPhylogenetic Systematics of the Millipede Family Xystodesmidae0 aPhylogenetic Systematics of the Millipede Family Xystodesmidae c01/03/2021 a1-260 v53 a

The millipede family Xystodesmidae includes 486 species distributed primarily in temperate deciduous forests in North America and East Asia. Species diversity of the family is greatest in the Appalachian Mountains of the eastern United States, with 188 species. Although the group includes notable taxa such as those that are bioluminescent and others that display Müllerian mimicry, producing up to 600 mg of cyanide, basic alpha-taxonomy of the group is woefully incomplete and more than 50 species remain undescribed in the Appalachian Mountains alone. In order to establish a robust phylogenetic foundation for addressing compelling evolutionary questions and describing species diversity, we assembled the largest species phylogeny (in terms of species sampling) to date in the Diplopoda. We sampled 49 genera (out of 57) and 247 of the species in the family Xystodesmidae, recollecting fresh material from historical type localities and discovering new species in unexplored regions. Here, we present a phylogeny of the family using six genes (four mitochondrial and two nuclear) and include pivotal taxa omitted from previous studies including Nannaria, Erdelyia, taxa from East Asia, and 10 new species. We show that 6 of the 11 tribes are monophyletic, and that the family is paraphyletic with respect to the Euryuridae and Eurymerodesmidae. Prior supraspecific classification is in part inconsistent with the phylogeny and convergent evolution has caused artificial genera to be proposed. Subspecific classification is likewise incongruent with phylogeny and subspecies are consistently not sister to conspecifics. The phylogeny is used as a basis to update the classification of the family, diagnose monophyletic groups, and to inform species hypotheses.

10aaposematic10abiogeography10aPolydesmida10aTaxonomy1 aMeans, Jackson, C.1 aHennen, Derek, A.1 aTanabe, Tsutomu1 aMarek, Paul, E. uhttps://academic.oup.com/isd/article/doi/10.1093/isd/ixab003/615402201355nas a2200229 4500008004100000022001400041245015300055210006900208260001500277300000900292490000700301520053700308653001700845653002600862653002700888653001600915653001800931100002300949700002000972700002700992856010601019 2021 eng d a1066-071200aThe discovery of a second population of the microendemic Apheloria whiteheadi (Shelley, 1986), a state-listed threatened species for Virginia0 adiscovery of a second population of the microendemic iApheloria  c29/01/2021 a9-170 v553 a

Apheloria whiteheadi (Shelley, 1986), the Laurel Creek millipede, a state-listed threatened species for Virginia, was previously known only from a narrow stretch surrounding the type locality in the Blue Ridge Mountains of southwestern Virginia. Here we present the discovery of a second A. whiteheadi population from Virginia’s inner Piedmont, approximately 20 km to the east of the type locality, and discuss habitat characteristics of the two sites and the potential implications of this finding.

10aconservation10aeastern United States10aLaurel Creek millipede10aPolydesmida10aXystodesmidae1 aMeans, Jackson, C.1 aIvanov, Kaloyan1 aWilliams, Benjamin, R. uhttps://virginianaturalhistorysociety.com/banisteria/pdf-files/ban55/Laurel_Creek_millipede_Means.pdf03178nas a2200241 4500008004100000022001400041245010200055210006900157260001500226300000900241490000600250520249100256653001402747653001402761653001202775653001402787653001402801653002402815653001802839100002302857700002002880856003602900 2017 eng d a2167-835900aIs geography an accurate predictor of evolutionary history in the millipede family Xystodesmidae?0 ageography an accurate predictor of evolutionary history in the m c12/10/2017 a1-310 v53 a

For the past several centuries, millipede taxonomists have used the morphology of male copulatory structures (modified legs called gonopods), which are strongly variable and suggestive of species-level differences, as a source to understand taxon relationships. Millipedes in the family Xystodesmidae are blind, dispersal-limited and have narrow habitat requirements. Therefore, geographical proximity may instead be a better predictor of evolutionary relationship than morphology, especially since gonopodal anatomy is extremely divergent and similarities may be masked by evolutionary convergence. Here we provide a phylogenetics-based test of the power of morphological versus geographical character sets for resolving phylogenetic relationships in xystodesmid millipedes. Molecular data from 90 species-group taxa in the family were included in a six-gene phylogenetic analysis to provide the basis for comparing trees generated from these alternative character sets. The molecular phylogeny was compared to topologies representing three hypotheses: (1) a prior classification formulated using morphological and geographical data, (2) hierarchical groupings derived from Euclidean geographical distance, and (3) one based solely on morphological data. Euclidean geographical distance was not found to be a better predictor of evolutionary relationship than the prior classification, the latter of which was the most similar to the molecular topology. However, all three of the alternative topologies were highly divergent (Bayes factor >10) from the molecular topology, with the tree inferred exclusively from morphology being the most divergent. The results of this analysis show that a high degree of morphological convergence from substantial gonopod shape divergence generated spurious phylogenetic relationships. These results indicate the impact that a high degree of morphological homoplasy may have had on prior treatments of the family. Using the results of our phylogenetic analysis, we make several changes to the classification of the family, including transferring the rare state-threatened species Sigmoria whiteheadi Shelley, 1986 to the genus Apheloria Chamberlin, 1921—a relationship not readily apparent based on morphology alone. We show that while gonopod differences are a premier source of taxonomic characters to diagnose species pairwise, the traits should be viewed critically as taxonomic features uniting higher levels.

10aDiplopoda10aEvolution10aGonopod10aHomoplasy10aphylogeny10aSigmoria whiteheadi10aXystodesmidae1 aMeans, Jackson, C.1 aMarek, Paul, E. uhttps://peerj.com/articles/385401039nas a2200289 4500008004100000022001400041245012100055210006900176260001500245300000900260490000600269520023500275653001500510653001300525653000800538653001400546653001400560653001200574653000800586653001300594653001600607100002300623700002300646700001600669700001600685856004800701 2015 eng d a1314-283600aA general methodology for collecting and preserving xystodesmid and other large millipedes for biodiversity research0 ageneral methodology for collecting and preserving xystodesmid an c17/08/2015 a1-170 v33 a

Here we summarize a methodology for large-bodied millipede collection, curation, and preservation for genetic analyses with the hope that sharing these techniques will stimulate interest in these charismatic detritivores.

10acollection10adetritus10aDNA10aEvolution10amillipede10amimicry10aRNA10aspecimen10aα-taxonomy1 aMeans, Jackson, C.1 aFrancis, Elizabeth1 aLane, Avery1 aMarek, Paul uhttp://bdj.pensoft.net/articles.php?id=5665