Cayenniola albaserrata n. sp., a geographical relict from a Brazilian hotspot of subterranean biodiversity and the first troglobitic Priodesmini (Polydesmida: Chelodesmidae: Chelodesminae).

A new troglobitic species of Chelodesmidae, Cayenniola albaserrata n. sp., from the Água Clara cave system, Caatinga Domain, Bahia, Brazil is described.

A bibliographic review of the Chelodesmidae of the Antilles and Bahamas (Diplopoda: Polydesmida).

Among millipede groups found in the Antilles, the family Chelodesmidae is the most species diverse and well represented in collections. However, to date, there has not been a bibliographic review of the family for the region. Here we compile and review the literature for the Chelodesmidae of the Antilles and the Bahamas, clarify the family's status for the region, and discuss the central deficits of its taxonomy and the most relevant obstacles for work in the group.

A revision of the species group in the millipede genus Chamberlin, 1918 (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Xystodesmidae).

Although many new species of the millipede genus Chamberlin, 1918 have been known from museum collections for over half a century, a systematic revision has not been undertaken until recently. There are two species groups in the genus: the species group and the species group. In this study, the species group was investigated.

The first true millipede-1306 legs long.

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.

Redescription of Rhysodesmus dasypus (Gervais, 1847), the type species of the genus (Polydesmida: Xystodesmidae).

As both the type of the genus and the largest known xystodesmid, Rhysodesmus dasypus (Gervais, 1847) is an important and charismatic Mexican species. Despite there are numerous taxonomic contributions, R. dasypus remains enigmatic and poorly diagnosed, necessitating the need for an updated taxonomic synthesis.

A revision of the species group in the millipede genus Chamberlin, 1918 (Diplopoda, Polydesmida, Xystodesmidae).

Millipedes in the family Xystodesmidae (Polydesmida) are often referred to as "colorful, flat-backed millipedes" for their bright aposematic coloration and tendency to form Müllerian mimicry rings in the Appalachian region. However, there are many species of Xystodesmidae that do not display colorful warning patterns, and instead have more cryptic appearances. Perhaps for this reason, groups such as the genus have remained understudied, despite containing a large number of undescribed species.

Apheloria polychroma, a new species of millipede from the Cumberland Mountains (Polydesmida: Xystodesmidae).

Millipedes of the genus Apheloria Chamberlin, 1921 occur in temperate broadleaf forests throughout eastern North America and west of the Mississippi River in the Ozark and Ouachita Mountains. Chemically defended with toxins made up of cyanide and benzaldehyde, the genus is part of a community of xystodesmid millipedes that compose several Müllerian mimicry rings in the Appalachian Mountains. We describe a model species of these mimicry rings, Apheloria polychroma n.

Is geography an accurate predictor of evolutionary history in the millipede family Xystodesmidae?

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.

A general methodology for collecting and preserving xystodesmid and other large millipedes for biodiversity research.

Background: With an estimated 80% of species remaining undescribed (but see Brewer et al. 2012), millipede taxonomy offers the opportunity to discover new species and explore biodiversity. The lack of basic alpha taxonomic information regarding millipedes belies their significant ecological role and potential as premier models in ecological and evolutionary studies.