A new Ceratosphys Ribaut, 1920 (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida, Opisthocheiridae) from Spain: taxonomy, phenology, and postembryonic development

The genus Ceratosphys Ribaut, 1920 (Diplopoda, Chordeumatida) includes 26 species, with 21 recorded in the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands. This study describes a new species, Ceratosphys dissensionis Gilgado & Andrés n. sp., from central Spain. For the first time, information on its postembryonic development and phenology is provided for any Iberian Chordeumatida Pocock, 1894. Specimens were collected in a mixed forest in Somosierra (Madrid, Spain) through monthly sampling of 30 litres of leaf litter over a year, processed using Berlese devices, and preserved in 70% ethanol. A total of 1050 specimens of all stages, except stadium I, were obtained. Morphology was studied with optic and scanning electron microscopy. Adults have 30 segments and undergo eight moults during postembryonic development, reaching adulthood in the ninth stadium. The species is univoltine with a life cycle of about one year, moulting approximately once per month. Adults appear in autumn, and their presence in leaf litter is likely related to environmental conditions.