A new, eyeless species of harvestman, Paranemastoma beroni, collected from the Stoykova Dupka 1 Cave in the Slavyanka Mountains (south-western Bulgaria) is described and illustrated. A character combination of the form of the penis, the form of the pedipalps and absence of scutum armament, distinguish the new species from all other Paranemastoma species. The closest morphological relative, and the only other eyeless example, is the troglobiont P. bureschi (Roewer 1926), which is allopatric (north-western Bulgaria) and clearly differs in the presence of scutum armament and lack of cheliceral apophysis and opening of the cheliceral gland. Characterization and comparison of sculpture in non-troglobiont and troglobiont Paranemastoma species and SEM illustrations are included. A case of cuticular neoteny in troglobionts is also reported.
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1 August 2011
A new anophthalmous species of Paranemastoma from Bulgaria (Opiliones: Nemastomatidae)
Plamen Genkov Mitov
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The Journal of Arachnology
Vol. 39 • No. 2
August 2011
Vol. 39 • No. 2
August 2011
Balkan
caves
cuticular neoteny
microsculpture
Paranemastoma beroni sp. nov
taxonomy
troglobite species