Opisthocheiridae is a family of millipedes belonging to the order Chordeumatida.[1] These millipedes range from 5 mm to 16 mm in length and are found from Belgium to Morocco.[2] Adult millipedes in this family have 26 or 30 segments (counting the collum as the first segment and the telson as the last).[3][2] This family includes the cave-dwelling species Opisthocheiron canayerensis, notable as one of few chordeumatidan species with only 26 segments.[4][3] The adult female of this species has only 42 pairs of legs, and the adult male has only 40 leg pairs,[4] as one would expect for adult chordeumatidans with four fewer segments than typically found in this order.[3]
| Opisthocheiridae | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification 
| |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Myriapoda |
| Class: | Diplopoda |
| Order: | Chordeumatida |
| Superfamily: | Cleidogonoidea |
| Family: | Opisthocheiridae |
Genera:[1]
- Brachytropisoma Silvestri, 1898
- Ceratosphys Ribaut, 1920
- Fuentea Brölemann, 1920
- Haplosphys Ribaut, 1920
- Hispaniodesmus Verhoeff, 1910
- Hispaniosoma Ribaut, 1913
- Marquetia Ribaut, 1905
- Marquetiella Jeekel, 1969
- Opisthocheiron Ribaut, 1913
- Proceratosphys Mauriès & Vicente, 1977
- Sireuma Reboleira & Enghoff, 2014
References edit
- ^ a b "Opisthocheiridae". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
- ^ a b Enghoff, Henrik; Golovatch, Sergei; Short, Megan; Stoev, Pavel; Wesener, Thomas (2015-01-01). "Diplopoda — taxonomic overview". Treatise on Zoology - Anatomy, Taxonomy, Biology. The Myriapoda, Volume 2: 363–453. doi:10.1163/9789004188273_017.
- ^ a b c Enghoff, Henrik; Dohle, Wolfgang; Blower, J. Gordon (1993). "Anamorphosis in Millipedes (Diplopoda) — The Present State of Knowledge with Some Developmental and Phylogenetic Considerations". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society. 109: 103–234.
- ^ a b Geoffroy, Jean-Jacques (1984). "Particularités du Développement Post-embryonaire du Diplopode Craspedosomide Cavernicole Opisthocheiron canayerensis". Mémoires de Biospéologie (in French). 11: 211–220.