Two new species of protandric pheretimoid earthworms belonging to the genus Metaphire (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) from Taiwan

This paper describes two new species, each consisting of two subspecies, of protandric, octothecal pheretimoid earthworms from Taiwan. They are Metaphire paiwanna sp. nov. typica, Metaphire paiwanna var. liliumfordiI subsp. nov., Metaphire bununa sp. nov. typica and Metaphire bununa var. glareosus subsp. nov. The var. typica of both new species occurred on the west side of the Central Mountain Range, whereas the subspecies, liliumfordi and glareosus, occurred on the east side of the range. Apparently, the Central Mountain Range constitutes a geographical barrier for isolation and subspeciation. Metaphire paiwanna has a male disc medial to male pore (opening of copulatory pouch) with a horizontal ridge, the character shared by holandric and sexthecal Amynthas swanus (Tsai) of Taiwan and Metaphire aggera (Kobayashi) of Korea and Manchuria, whereas M. bununa resembles more closely holandric, octothecal Metaphire riukiuensis (Ohfuchi) of the Riukiu Islands than protandric, octothecal Metaphire stephensoni (Michaelsen) of Indochina.     

Four new species of Amynthas earthworms (Oligochaeta: Megascolecidae) from the Central Mountain Range of southern Taiwan

Four new species of terrestrial earthworms belonging to the genus Amynthas (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) are described from the Central Mountain Range in southern Taiwan. Two octothecate species, Amynthas pavimentus sp. nov. and Amynthas biorbis sp. nov., were found at elevations of 2000–2700 m and 412–1000 m, respectively, on both east and west slopes. Amynthas pavimentus has patched genital papillae between setal line and intersegmental furrow in VIII–IX and XVII–XX. Amynthas biorbis has a pair of large papillae adjacent to male porophores in XVIII. The other two species are the octothecate Amynthas libratus sp. nov., found at 1000 m, and the sexthecate Amynthas hongyehensis sp. nov., found at 950–1000 m, on the eastern slope. Amynthas libratus is related to A. pavimentus but has horizontal rows of papillae along setal lines or intersegmental furrows in VII–IX and XVII–XX. Amynthas hongyehensis has two pairs of large, presetal papillae medial to male porophores in XVIII and XIX.     

Four new earthworms of the genus Amynthas (Oligochaeta: Megascolecidae) from Mount Emei,Sichuan Province,China

Four new species were collected from Mt. Emei, Sichuan Province, China. They are Amynthas leshanensis sp. nov., Amynthas gilvus sp. nov., Amynthas retortus sp. nov. and Amynthas orbicularis sp. nov. The first three species could be assigned to the Amynthas sieboldi group and the last species could be assigned to the Amynthas aeruginosus group according to the definition of Sims and Easton. A. leshanensis sp. nov. has the male pore porophore surrounded by a large irregular-shaped pad which extends from 17/18–½ XIX, and the intestinal caeca are complex. A. gilvus sp. nov. has each male pore on a slightly raised elliptical glandular flat-top pad, with a pointed extension lateral to each porophore. Amynthas retortus sp. nov. has a pair of small, round post-setal genital papillae medial to male porophores on XVII, spermathecal seminal chambers are twisted into zigzags and accessory glands are present on spermathecae and prostate gland areas. A. orbicularis sp. nov. has the spermathecal pores near dorso-lateral, complex intestinal caeca complex, three accessory glands with long ducts near the male pores, and the spermathecal seminal chambers are twisted into zigzags. The barcode data (partial sequence of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I) of each species has been submitted to the National Center of Biotechnology Information GenBank.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:5B82315E-5CF8-4048-87C4-B702021464B5     

Four new species of terrestrial earthworms belonging to the genus Amynthas (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) from Taiwan with discussion on speculative synonyms and species delimitation in oligochaete taxonomy

This paper describes four new species of earthworms, Amynthas shinanmontis sp. nov., Amynthas chilanensis sp. nov., Amynthas bilineatus sp. nov., and Amynthas cruxus sp. nov. from Taiwan. Amynthas shinanmontis is sexthecate and parthenogenetic with individuals with various levels of degeneration of spermathecae and male reproductive organs. It occurs at elevations of 1700–2700 m in the Central Mountain Range in southern Taiwan. Amynthas bilineatus and A. chilanensis are athecate and also parthenogenetic. They occur, respectively, at elevations of 1000 m in the central region and 1325 m in the northeastern region of Taiwan. Amynthas cruxus is octothecate, amphimictic, and occurs at elevations of 900–1700 m in southern Taiwan. This paper also discusses confusion and dilemma caused by uncertain, speculative synonyms and parthenogenetic morphs in species delimitation in oligochaete taxonomy, and recommends the use of absolute synonyms and phylogenetic species concept.     

New Amynthas species (Oligochaeta: Megascolecidae) from south and central Hainan Island,China and estimates of evolutionary divergence among some corticis-group species

This paper describes four new species of earthworms from Hainan Island, China: Amynthas obsoletus sp. nov., Amynthas dorsualis sp. nov., Amynthas mirifius sp. nov. and Amynthas pulvinus sp. nov. Amynthas obsoletus is an athecate earthworm, has greyish or brownish pigment on the dorsum, and has two genital papillae beside each male pore, one medial and one anterior, three genital papillae arranged transversely in VIII, prostates in XVII–XX. Amynthas dorsualis, Amynthas mirifius and Amynthas pulvinus are all octothecate earthworms, and key to the corticis-group, but the spermathecal pores are located on the dorsum in Amynthas dorsualis. Amynthas dorsualis has dark grey and dark brown pigment on the dorsum, an annular clitellum in 1/10XIV–7/10XVI, and lacks genital markings. Amynthas mirifius and Amynthas pulvinus both have four pairs of spermathecal pores on the ventrum. Amynthas mirifius has four peanut-in-shell-shaped genital markings, which are rectangular with enlarged rounded ends, between the two male pores, while Amynthas pulvinus has a large glandular rounded rectangle-shaped genital marking on the ventral side of 17/18–18/19. DNA barcodes are provided for the last two new species collected in 2011, and have been submitted to NCBI to enable molecular species identification. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:27AD7191-5438-4F10-B177-5FCCA893A2EB     

Four new species of genus Amynthas (Oligochaeta,Megascolecidae) from Hainan Island,China

Four new earthworm species of the genus Amynthas are described from Hainan Island, China. They are Amynthas endophilus sp. nov., Amynthas fluviatilis sp. nov., Amynthas fucatus sp. nov. and Amynthas apapillatus sp. nov. Amynthas apapillatus sp. nov. has three spermathecal pores in 6/7–8/9 while the other three new species have two pairs of spermathecal pores in 5/6–6/7. Their anatomical and morphological characteristics are compared to similar species from Hainan Island, China mainland and South-East Asia. Furthermore, COI and 16S gene sequences of these new species are submitted to NCBI. http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:33B61DE5-BE64-47E9-B77C-D6234D25803B     

Two new earthworms of the genus Amynthas Kinberg, 1867 (Clitellata: Megascolecidae) from Mt Jiri,Korea

Two new species of the genus Amynthas are described from Mt Jiri (Korea): Amynthas baikmudongensis sp. nov., and Amynthas cheonghakdongensis sp. nov. The species A. baikmudongensis sp. nov. has two pairs of spermathecal pores in intersegments 5/6/7; large circular-shaped raised pads extending from 17/18, 18/19 with transverse grooves extending from approximately the centres of the pads towards the presetal half of the pad. The others species, A. cheonghakdongensis sp. nov., has two pairs of spermathecal pores in intersegments 6/7/8; and circular male porophores extending from 17/18 to 18/19.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:A3E018E9-A520-4841-A1C9-E27870F24E88     

Five new earthworm species of the genera Amynthas and Metaphire (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) from Matsu,Taiwan

This paper describes five new species of earthworms belonging to the genera Amynthas and Metaphire (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) from Matsu, Taiwan. They are Amynthas bimontis sp. nov., Amynthas hsiyinensis sp. nov., Amynthas dongyinensis sp. nov., Amynthas dongjuensis sp. nov. and Metaphire matsuensis sp. nov. Amynthas bimontis is a small, quadrithecate earthworm with two pairs of spermathecal pores in 5/6/7 and two small genital papillae lateral to each male porophore. Amynthas hsiyinensis is quadrithecate with two pairs of spermathecal pores in 7/8/9, has numerous small genital papillae and is morphologically similar to Amynthas polyglandularis (Tsai, 1964) from northern Taiwan. Amynthas dongyinensis is sexthecate with three pairs of spermathecal pores in 6/7–8/9 and has simple male pore structure. Amynthas dongjuensis is octothecate with or without a genital papilla medial to each male pore. Metaphire matsuensis is sexthecate with three pairs of dorsolateral spermathecal pores in 5/6–7/8, and has each male pore surrounded by 0–10 small papillae on top of a cone-shaped everted copulatory chamber. DNA barcodes (the 5’-end sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene) of the five new species are also reported.

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:2EBE3507-917B-4074-B73B-CF8DC88966B9     

A new gigantic earthworm of the genus Metaphire Sims and Easton (Megascolecidae: Oligochaeta) from Taiwan with reference to evolutional trends in body sizes and segment numbers of the Pheretima genus-group

This paper describes a new species of gigantic terrestrial earthworm Metaphire taiwanensis sp. nov. from western Taiwan. It reached the maximum length of 860 mm for a living clitellate and 637 mm after preservation. It is an autochthonous species found in Mt Beidongyan and the Meifeng area of the Central Mountain Range at elevations of 1800–2100 m. M. taiwanensis is octothecate and protandric, characters shared by Metaphire stephensoni (Michaelsen) of Indochina, and Metaphire bununa Tsai, Tsai and Liaw and Metaphire paiwanna Tsai, Tsai and Liaw of Taiwan. These four species are combined as a new species-group called the stephensoni-group within the genus Metaphire Sims and Easton. It is closely related to the congeneric ignobilis species-group, which is also octothecate but holandric. It differs from holandric and quadrithecate Metaphire magna (Chen) of Hainan Island, in which the length also reaches 700 mm. Specific variation and evolutionary trends in sizes and segment numbers of the Pheretima genus-group are discussed.     

Seven new species of Amynthas (Clitellata: Megascolecidae) and new earthworm records from Taiwan

Earthworm specimens collected in southern Taiwan consisted of seven new species of Amynthas and several previously known species, mostly widely distributed peregrines. The new species are A. nanrenensis of the octothecal A. corticis species group, A. monsoonus and A. huangi of the sexthecal A. aelianus species group, and four proandric octothecal species: A. chaishanensis, A. hengchunensis, A. kaopingensis and A. ailiaoensis. Amynthas chaishanensis has dorsal intrasegmental spermathecal pores, but the other three proandric species have dorsal, lateral or ventral intersegmental spermathecal pores, respectively. The proandric species are united by several features, including the enclosure of segment xi in a sac, as in A. formosae (also proandric), octothecal with spermathecae in vi–ix, spermathecal diverticula stalks generally kinked and often enclosed in membrane, and prostatic ducts divided polytomously into numerous small ductlets, which may be grouped into bundles of two to five. In A. ailiaoensis the prostatic duct trunk contains up to seven separate lumens in the ental half, surrounded by the circular muscle of the duct, while in A. chaishanensis the prostatic duct trunk contains about 40 small lumens. Of the previously known species in the collection, Pontodrilus litoralis and Metaphire houlleti are first reported from Taiwan. Additional locations for A. incongruus and A. robustus are given, and in the latter case the material appears to be the usual male‐sterile morph. Other species found are Pontoscolex corethrurus, Amynthas corticis, A. gracilis, Metaphire californica, and Polypheretima elongata.     

Four new earthworm species of the genus Amynthas Kinberg (Oligochaeta: Megascolecidae) from the island of Hainan and Guangdong Province,China

This paper describes four new species of morrisi-group earthworms from Hainan and Guangdong Provinces, China: Amynthas instabilis sp. nov, Amynthas dilatatus sp. nov, Amynthas infuscuatus sp. nov. and Amynthas qiongzhongensis sp. nov. All four species have two pairs of spermathecal pores in 5/6–6/7; male pores in XVIII, 0.33 circumference ventrally apart, each on the top of a slightly raised porophore, surrounded by several tiny genital papillae, in a pulvinate pad with three to six circular folds. Characters of the spermathecae, prostate glands and other anatomical features easily distinguish the new species from earthworms previously reported from the morrisi-group.

http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:545E9152-C826-44A2-949E-402434D8493D.     

Review of the Fridericia species (Oligochaeta: Enchytraeidae) possessing two spermathecal diverticula and description of a new species

A new Fridericia species (Fridericia lacii sp. nov.) is described. Including this new species the number of valid Fridericia species with two diverticula per spermatheca is 50. The present study provides an opportunity for the comparison and separation of Fridericia species on the basis of spermatheca and diverticulum characteristics. Nine tables summarize the two larger groups and five subgroups of species possessing bidiverticulate spermathecae. The new species is distinguished from all known valid congeners in this assemblage by the following combination of traits: (1) 4–7 mm long, 200–290 µm wide (in vivo) with 30–36 segments; (2) maximum four chaetae per bundle; (3) all pairs of pharyngeal glands with ventral lobes, the third is the largest with posterior projections; (4) only three pairs of preclitellar nephridia; (5) oesophageal appendages type a; (6) mucocytes type a, lenticytes small; (7) chylus cells in preclitellar segments; (8) clitellum girdle‐shaped, glands in transverse rows, between the bursal slits only granulocytes; bursal slit is longitudinal; (9) seminal vesicle small or absent; (10) sperm funnel one‐half as long as the body diameter, collar narrower than the funnel body; (11) subneural glands absent; (12) the ampulla of the spermatheca with two sessile (or with short stalks), spherical, thin‐walled diverticula, communication with the oesophagus separate, ectal duct about as long as body diameter, one floppy ectal gland at the orifice.