Rediscovery of a forgotten Italian pill millipede endemic to the Apuan Alps, Glomeris apuana

Description

Pill millipedes of the order Glomerida are especially species-rich in Europe. A special center of Endemism is northern Italy (see project: Endemic pill millipedes of Northern Italy).

The collection of a conspicuous black pill millipede led after a long literature search to the discovery of the name Glomeris apuana Verhoeff, 1911. This name is apparently forgotten, not mentioned after 1927, and it does not appear in Fauna Europeae, recent Italien species lists, or recent European millipede atlases. Apparently, the species occurs in the Apuan Alps, and area renown for its Carrara Marble. A molecular genetic analysis, as well as a comparison with type material, will now help us to elucidate the status, distribution, and the relationships of this unusual pill millipede species.

Location