34 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol. m 



A study of Dr. Clarke's material, however, suggests that a brief 

 survey of the millipeds that he obtained is quite desirable, particularly 

 with respect to the known endemic species, most of which are very 

 poorly described and illustrated, and whose systematic status has 

 often been troublesome to workers treating particular groups of the 

 Diplopoda. 



A summary of the pertinent literature is not difficult to devise, as 

 only Pocock (1888, 1894) and Loomis (1934) have contributed original 

 information on the Dominican milliped fauna. 



Pocock's first paper dealt with a small collection made on the island 

 in 1886 by G. A. Ramage, and included the descriptions of two en- 

 demic species, which he named Spirostreptus dominicanus and Strongy- 

 losoma semirugosum. In his 1894 monograph, Pocock added another 

 new species, Rhinocricus leucostigma, to the Dominican fauna. 



H. F. Loomis, an experienced student of the group, spent some time 

 collecting on Dominica in early 1933, obtaining additional specimens 

 of R. leucostigma as well as many other forms that had not been taken 

 by Ramage The species that he found, chiefly in the vicinity of 

 Roseau, are: Siphonotus purpureus Pocock, Rhinocricus leucostigma 

 Pocock, Trigoniulus lumhricinus (Gerstaecker), Spirostrophus naresi 

 (Pocock), Orthomorpha coarctata (Saussure), and Hexadesmus lateridens 

 Loomis. 



Dr. Clarke's material includes all three of the species named by 

 Pocock, two of the five added by Loomis, and two others previously 

 not collected on the island The number of milHped species known 

 from Dominica now stands at ten, of which six, however, are forms 

 widely distributed by commerce and agriculture It is anticipated 

 that collecting in the more remote interior mountains will at least 

 double the presently known total. 



Order Glomeridesmida 



Family Glomeridesmidae 



Glomeridesmus species 



A single female belonging to this genus was taken by Dr. Clarke at 

 Castle Bruce Junction, March 10, 1956, with the notation "under 

 leaves and dead wood." Although this species is the first Dominican 

 record for the genus, with the species almost certainly an undescribed 

 one, a new name is not proposed at this time in the absence of males. 

 Females of nearly all known glomeridesmids are quite similar, and 

 cannot be distinguished on the basis of existing accounts in the litera- 

 ture. Several other forms of Glomeridesmus have been recorded from 

 the Lesser Antilles: marmoreus Pocock from St. Vincent, and grena- 

 danus Chamberlin from Grenada and Trinidad. Species are likewise 



