132 
Psyche 
[December 
Variation and Discussion. This species is one of the 
most variable known in the genus. At one point I decided 
that it actually represented two separate species, but 
further studies showed that the various differential charac- 
teristics varied individually from population to population 
making it impossible to separate out two clear entities. 
Unfortunately, the samples available at present are small, 
and any final settlement of the taxonomic status of the 
several variations seen in this species must await careful 
analysis of further collections. 
The most striking variation concerns the male ventral 
organ. Some populations lack this entirely even in adult 
specimens, while other populations have a well developed 
ventral organ (see figure) consisting of a number of 
finger-like setae situated around the border of the second 
and third abdominal segments. In some populations, ap- 
parently, adult males exist both with and without this 
organ. The ventral pseudocelli may be entirely absent, 
while in a few forms a single pair of ventrals occur on 
the head. The dorsal surface of the third and fourth 
abdominal segments may have four pseudocelli, while the 
leg bases may have only one or one on the first pair and 
two on the remainder. The apical filament of the empodial 
appendage may exceed the apex of the unguis or only 
reach to its middle. The chaetotaxy also varies a great 
deal, particularly in the posterior parts of the abdomen. 
It is quite possible that larger series will show this to be 
a species complex rather than a single variable form. 
Type locality : American University Campus, Beirut, 
Lebanon, X-53. Also taken from: Chamlane, Lebanon, 
XII-13-53; Ain Z’halte Cedars, Lebanon, XI-2-53; Latakia, 
Syria, just below Turkish border, VII-2-53. 
Metaphorura bipartita Handschin 
Metaphorura bipartita Handschin, 1920, Verh. Naturf. Gesel., Basel. 
32:1-37. 
The specimens of this species appear to be very typical. 
Cassagnau found it in two places, Jezzine, 6-XI-51, and 
Sources de Habani, 22-XI-51. I located it in two other 
places, 14 km. South of Sidon and Ain Z’halte, Lebanon. 
