Seven New Species of Giant Pill-Millipedes Found in Madagascar

Posted on June 9, 2014

Scientists have discovered seven new species of pill-millipedes in Madagascar. The species belong to the genus Sphaeromimus, which is Latin for "small ball animal." One of the species of newly discovered pill-millipedes is larger than a ping-pong ball when coiled up. The newly discovered species are also known for their chirping. One of the new species, S. lavasoa is pictured above.

The new species are smaller than the baseball-sized Zoosphaerium pill-millipedes. A newly discovered Sphaeromimus lavasoa species is pictured on the left, while a Zoosphaerium is pictured on the right in the photograph below.

The newly discovered pill-millipedes have the largest chirping organs ever found on any millipede. The scientists believe the chirping is used during mating. Some of the species are microendemics, which means they are only found in one tiny forest fragment. The fragment is a few hundred meters long and wide. Another one of the new species, S. saintelucei, is thought to be the most endangered millipede in all of Madagascar. The scientists say it lives a fragment of the Sainte Luce littoral rainforest, which is characterized by its laterite soil that is "now so small that no lemur or other large vertebrate species can survive in it."

Dr. Thomas Wesener, lead author of the study from the Research Museum Alexander Koenig in Bonn, Germany, says in the announcement, "Despite their close proximity, both species are not even closely related. Both the fragments where they were found are currently threatened by a huge, billion-dollar titanium ore strip mining project. Although there are intentions to designate and manage conservation zones, the plan is to protect only one large fragment may result in the extinction of some of the species if additional conservation measures aren't undertaken."

A research paper on the newly discovered pill-millipedes was published here in the journal, ZooKeys.

INSECTS
MILLIPEDES