A checklist of the millipedes of Georgia, Caucasus (Diplopoda)

By

Kokhia, Mzia S.
Golovatch, Sergei

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2018

Original Publication

ZooKeys

Volume

741

Pages

35-48

Subjects

Colchis , Distribution , endemism , Fauna , Myriapoda

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Sofia, Bulgaria Pensoft Publishers

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.741.20042

 

Abstract

The diplopod fauna of Georgia, Transcaucasia, is very rich given the country’s relatively small territory, presently comprising 95 species from 42 genera, 12 families, and seven orders. Most of the Diplopoda known from Georgia are subendemics (39 species, or 38%), shared with one or more neighbouring countries, but another 33 species (33%) are strict endemics, nearly all highly localized, including 12 presumed troglobites. Several genera are likewise endemic to Georgia, including a few troglobionts. Within Georgia, the fauna of the western part (= Colchis) is particularly rich and diverse, the faunas of the central and eastern parts of the country growing increasingly depauperate inland and apparently following a rather gradual climatic aridisation gradient from west (the Black Sea coast) to east (Armenia and Azerbaijan). Much more work to include alpine and cave environments is required in order to reveal and refine the real diversity of Georgia’s Diplopoda.