Four New Species of Dicranocentrus and Heteromurus from the State of Mérida, Venezuela (Collembola: Entomobryidae)

Abstract

The new species Dicranocentrus paramoense, D. bidentatus, Heteromurus (Heteromurtrella) echinatus and H. (H.) pruinosus are described from specimens collected in the State of Mérida, Venezuela. A new species of each genus comes from a cloud forest near the city of Mérida and a new species of each taxon was collected in paramos northeast of Mérida. Congeneric species are phyletically very near and their closest relatives live in Central America and the West Indies. Dicranocentrus bidentatus is the sole species of its genus with only two teeth (the basal pair) along the inner margin of the unguis. Heteromurus (Heteromurtrella) echinatus is unique among members of its subgenus in possessing dental spines, although some individuals lack these structures. This is the first record of such intraspecific variation. Four tables detail variations of a number of characters and 41 figures complement the text.