120 Rowland M. Shelley 



Gampground, Olympic National Park, Jefferson County, Washington. 

 Also known from Port Renfrew and seven other sites along the Pacific 

 Coast in the southwestern corner of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, 

 Canada (Shelley 1990). 



Metaxycheir Buckett and Gardner, 1969. 



M. prolata Buckett and Gardner. 7 mi (11.2 km) northeast of 

 Moscow, Latah County, Idaho. Also known from Laird Park, cited as 

 Laird "Peak," 3.0 mi (4.8 km) southeast of Harvard, Latah County 

 (Shelley 1990). 



ANATOMY AND TAXONOMIC CHARACTERS 



Color — The overall "rust" colored appearance distinguishes species 

 of Montaphe from sympatric xystodesmids of all tribes — Orophini, 

 Harpaphini, and Chonaphini — and I have even noticed a tinge of this 

 pigmentation in dried specimens that have been out of alcohol for 

 years. I characterize the color as "rust" because it is a muted or 

 dampened red, as if mixed with a touch of brown, as opposed to the 

 bright red of Appalachian species of Sigmoria (Shelley and Whitehead 

 1986). The rust color seems characteristic of the genus, as the pigment 

 was clearly evident in the type series of M. paraphoena after 1 1/2 

 years in preservative. The color is actually restricted to the paranota 

 and concolorous bands along the caudal margins of each metatergite, 

 but the latter are so broad as to cover most of the metazona and 

 dominate the organism. Although one notices the dark gray to black 

 base color, the rust pigmentation overwhelms one's senses and identifies 

 the milliped as a representative of Montaphe. 



The red banded pattern of Semionellus placidus is less distinctive 

 than the color of Montaphe spp., but in its range, S. placidus is about 

 the only xystodesmid displaying this color. An occasional specimen 

 of Sigmoria (Rudiloria) spp. may show reddish stripes, but this pattern 

 is exhibited primarily by congeners to the south in the Carolinas, 

 Tennessee, and Georgia (Shelley and Whitehead 1986). Yellow is the 

 dominant color in the forms of Sigmoria, Apheloria, and Brachoria 

 that are sympatric with S. placidus. 



Body Form and Somatic Features — Tubaphe levii and S. placidus 

 are readily identified by their general body forms. As noted by Shelley 

 (1990), the unmistakable, nearly julidan appearance of the caudal 2/3 

 of its body, caused by the absence of paranota caudal to segment 4 

 (Fig. 45), instantly distinguishes T. levii from sympatric specimens of 

 Harpaphe h. haydeniana. Though less distinctive, the generally sub- 

 cylindrical body form, caused by reduced and declined paranota, also 

 distinguishes S. placidus from the much broader and more robust 



