Sphaerotheriida
Sphaerotheriida | |
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Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Myriapoda |
Class: | Diplopoda |
Subclass: | Chilognatha |
Infraclass: | Pentazonia |
Superorder: | Oniscomorpha |
Order: | Sphaerotheriida Brandt, 1833 |
Families | |
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Synonyms | |
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Sphaerotheriida is an order of millipedes[1] in the infraclass Pentazonia,[2] sometimes known as giant pill millipedes.[3] They inhabit Southern Africa, Madagascar, South and Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.[4] Like the Northern Hemisphere pill millipedes of the order Glomerida, these millipedes can roll into a ball when disturbed. When they are rolled-up, most sphaerotheriidans reach a maximum size of a cherry [5] or golf ball,[6] but some species from Madagascar can even reach the size of an orange[7] (an example of island gigantism; illustration - [1]). When rolled-up, predators are unable to unravel giant pill millipedes since the margins of their second and last dorsal plates fit perfectly into one another, creating a sealed ball. A few giant pill millipede species are able to produce sound, the only millipedes known to do this.[8] This order of millipedes is also unique in that some African species are used for medicinal purposes.[9]
Morphology
Sphaerotheriidans are characterized by a relatively conservative body
Sphaerotheriida somewhat resemble the North American and Eurasian pill millipedes of the order Glomerida, but are generally larger in size (20–80 millimetres or 0.8–3.1 inches body length). Until the end of the 20th century only the largest known species in the order Glomerida rivalled the size of even the smallest known Sphaerotheriida, but in the early 21st century a much smaller Sphaerotheriid was described from Madagascar: full-grown specimens of Microsphaerotherium ivohibiensis are just the size of a pea.[10] Also on Madagascar, some giant pill millipede species exhibit island gigantism, reaching more than 9.5 cm (3.7 in) in outstretched length and a size comparable to an orange when rolled up.[7]
The orders differ in the number of tergites in adults (10 or 11 in Glomerida, 12 in Sphaerotheriida) and legs (17 or 19 in Glomerida, 21 or 23 in Sphaerotheriida), and show great differences in their head morphology and
Both orders have the ability to roll into a perfect ball, protecting the head, antennae, and the vulnerable underside. However, this rolled-up position (volvation) is achieved differently. In Glomerida, the enlarged second body ring (thoracic shield) has a more or less visible gap within which fit the tips of tergites 3–11, whereas in Sphaerotheriida the tips of tergites 3–12 fit perfectly into a groove on the thoracic shield. Juvenile sphaerotheriidans show the same gap as the Glomerida.[13] Many giant pill millipede species have special ledges ('locking carinae') on the underside of the tergite tips and the anal shield which can be moved above a brim on the thoracic shield. These millipedes remain passively locked-up since they do not need continuous muscle contractions to remain in the rolled-up position.
Distribution
In general, Sphaerotheriida have a Gondwanan distribution (the exception is Zephroniidae from southeast Asia and adjacent regions).[4][14] Gondwana was the large southern continent that formed after the breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea.[15] It included the modern-day landmasses of South America (which however lacks sphaerotheriidans), New Zealand, Australia, India, and Madagascar. It is believed that the Sphaerotheriida originated in Gondwana and then diverged into its various forms.
Sphaerotheriida is divided into four families whose distributions do not overlap:
A few giant pill millipede species have been dispersed by humans, probably inadvertently. Examples include the Sri Lankan Arthrosphaeridae species Arthrosphaera brandtii which has established a population in the Usambara Mountains, Tanzania,[17] as well as some South African Sphaerotherium species which have isolated populations in Malawi.[18] Another likely candidate is Sechelliosoma forcipatum, a small species of the southeast Asian family Zephroniidae, currently only known from a single island in the Seychelles.[19]
Ecology
Little is known about the ecology, development and life history of Sphaerotheriida, but apparently all species are
Like most millipedes, Sphaerotheriida inhabit mainly the leaf litter of humid forests. Some species, however, show an
Defense against predation
The rolling-up ability and tough skeletal armor of the Sphaerotheriida offer protection against some predators, but a wide variety of predators feed on them, or even specialise in them as a source of food.
Apart from the rolling-up behavior of giant pill millipedes, camouflage may be an important defense mechanism against predators that hunt by sight, such as birds.
Sphaerotheriida also are subject to internal parasitism, and several species of nematodes are obligate parasites of particular species of giant pill millipedes.[28][29]
Taxonomy
By 2014, over 326 species in around 34 genera[30] in approximately 20 genera had been described.[4][31][32]
- Family: Arthrosphaeridae
- Arthrosphaera Pocock, 1895 – 40 species, India, Sri Lanka
- Zoosphaerium Pocock, 1895 – 55 species, Madagascar
- Sphaeromimus de Saussure & Zehntner, 1902 – 10 species, southeast Madagascar
- Microsphaerotherium Wesener & van den Spiegel, 2007 – 2 species, Madagascar
- Family: Cyliosomatidae[32]
- Cyliosoma Pocock, 1895 – 15 species, Australia
- Cynotelopus Jeekel, 1986 – monotypic, southwest Australia
- Family: Procyliosomatidae
- Procyliosoma Silvestri, 1917 – 11 species, Eastern Australia, Tasmania, New Zealand
- Family: Sphaerotheriidae
- Sphaerotherium Brandt, 1833 – 54 species, South Africa, Zimbabwe
- Kylindotherium Attems, 1926 – monotypic, South Africa
- Family: Zephroniidae
- Bothrobelum Verhoeff, 1924 – monotypic, Borneo
- Cryxus Leach, 1814 – monotypic, Asia
- Indosphaera Attems, 1935 – 2 species N. India, Myanmar
- Kophosphaera Attems, 1935 – 5 species, N. India, Nepal
- Leptotelopus Silvestri, 1897 – monotypic, Myanmar
- Prionobelum Verhoeff, 1924 – 8 species, Vietnam, SW China
- Sphaerobelum Verhoeff, 1924 – 4 species, Vietnam
- Zephronia Gray, 1832 – 37 species N. India, Myanmar, Malayan Peninsula, Java, Sumatra, Borneo
- Sphaeropoeus Brandt, 1833 – 22 species, N. India, Myanmar, Malayan Peninsula, Java, Sumatra, Borneo
- Tigridosphaera Jeekel, 2000 – 4 species, Malayan Peninsula
- Castanotherium Pocock, 1895 – 50 species, Indonesian Islands, Philippines
- Castanotheroides Chamberlin, 1921 – 3 species, Philippines
- Sechelliosoma Mauriès, 1980 – monotypic, Seychelles
- Rajasphaera Attems, 1935 – monotypic, Borneo
Phylogeny
The first modern
References
- ^ R. L. Hoffman (1980). "Contributions à l'étude de la faune terrestre des îles granitiques de l'archipel des Séchelles". Revue Zoologique africaine. 94 (1): 138–168.
- PMID 19944188.
- ^ "Giant Pill Millipedes (Order Sphaerotheriida)". iNaturalist. Retrieved 2023-03-07.
- ^ S2CID 86041765.
- Transactions of the Royal Society of New Zealand. 84 (2): 431–446.
- ^ a b D. van den Spiegel, S. I. Golovatch & M. Hamer (2003). "Revision of some of the oldest species in the millipede genus Sphaerotherium, Brandt, 1833 (Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida, Sphaerotheriidae), with new synonymies". African Invertebrates. 43: 143–181. Archived from the original on 2011-10-04.
- ^ a b Thomas Wesener & Johann-Wolfgang Wägele (2008). "The giant pill millipedes of Madagascar: revision of the genus Zoosphaerium (Myriapoda, Diplopoda, Sphaerotheriida)" (PDF). Zoosystema. 30 (1): 5–85. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-06-12.
- ^ U. Haacker (1968). "Das Sexualverhalten von Sphaerotherium dorsale (Myriapoda, Diplopoda)". Verhandlungen der Deutschen Zoologischen Gesellschaft. 3: 454–463.
- ^ D. G. Herbert, M. L. Hamer, M. Mander, N. Mkhize & F. Prins (2003). "Invertebrate animals as a component of the traditional medicine trade in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa". African Invertebrates. 44 (2): 327–344. Archived from the original on 2011-09-03.
{{cite journal}}
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- ^ H. P. Wesner. "Die Einkugelung" (in German).
- ^ C. A. W. Jeekel (1974). "The group taxonomy and geography of the Sphaerotheriida (Diplopoda)". Symposia of the Zoological Society of London. 32: 41–52.
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- ^ C. A. W. Jeekel (1986). "Millipedes from Australia". Beaufortia. 36 (3): 35–50.
- ^ H. Enghoff (1978). "Arthrosphaera cf. brandti (Humbert), a giant pill millipede found in Tanzania, probably introduced from Sri Lanka". Revue de zoologie africaine. 91 (4): 997–999.
- ^ D. van den Spiegel (2002). "On the occurrence of Sphaerotherium punctulatum in Malawi (Diplopoda: Sphaerotheriidae)". Musee Royal de l'Afrique Centrale, Tervuren, Zoologique. 290: 171–174.
- ^ J.-P. Mauriés (1980). "Contributions à l'étude de la faune terrestre des îles granitiques de l'archipel des Séchelles". Revue Zoologique africaine. 94 (1): 138–168.
- ^ C. S. Crawford (1992). "Millipedes as model detritivores". Berichte des Naturwissenschaftlich-Medizinischen Verein Innsbruck. 10: 277–288.
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