Parafontaria

Parafontaria is a genus of "flat-backed" millipedes (order Polydesmida) consisting of 13 species native to Japan, where they are known as train millipedes.[1][2] Some species exhibit periodical swarming behavior during which large numbers of individuals congregate and can sometimes slow or derail trains when they occur on tracks. Individuals vary from around 3.5 to 6 cm (1.4 to 2.4 in) as adults, and feed on leaf litter as well as soil, making them comparable to earthworms in facilitating decomposition and soil nutrient cycling.[3][4]

Parafontaria
Parafontaria tonominea
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Subphylum:
Myriapoda
Class:
Diplopoda
Order:
Polydesmida
Family:
Xystodesmidae
Subfamily:
Parafontariinae

Hoffman, 1978
Genus:
Parafontaria

Verhoeff, 1936
Species

See text

Synonyms

Japonaria Attems, 1938
Grayaria Chamberlin, 1943

Species
  • Parafontaria crenata Shinohara, 1986
  • Parafontaria doenitzi (Karsch, 1880)
  • Parafontaria erythrosoma (Takakuwa, 1942)
  • Parafontaria falcifera (Verhoeff, 1936)
  • Parafontaria ishiii Shinohara, 1986
  • Parafontaria laminata (Attems, 1909)
  • Parafontaria longa Shinohara, 1986
  • Parafontaria longispina Miyosi, 1951
  • Parafontaria shiraiwaensis Shinohara, 1986
  • Parafontaria terminalis (Takakuwa, 1942)
  • Parafontaria tokaiensis Tanabe, 2002
  • Parafontaria tonominea (Attems, 1899)
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References
  1. Tanabe, T. (2002). "Revision of the millipede genus Parafontaria Verhoeff, 1936 (Diplopoda, Xystodesmidae)". Journal of Natural History. 36 (18): 2139–2183. doi:10.1080/00222930110085610.
  2. Marek, P., et al. (2014) A Species Catalog of the Millipede Family Xystodesmidae (Diplopoda: Polydesmida). Special Publication 17. Virginia Museum of Natural History. pp.86-90
  3. Hashimoto, Minori; Kaneko, Nobuhiro; Ito, Masamichi T; Toyota, Ayu (2004). "Exploitation of litter and soil by the train millipede Parafontaria laminata (Diplopoda: Xystodesmidae) in larch plantation forests in Japan". Pedobiologia. 48 (1): 71–81. doi:10.1016/j.pedobi.2003.09.001.
  4. Toyota, Ayu; Kaneko, Nobuhiro; Ito, Masamichi T. (2006). "Soil ecosystem engineering by the train millipede Parafontaria laminata in a Japanese larch forest". Soil Biology and Biochemistry. 38 (7): 1840–1850. doi:10.1016/j.soilbio.2005.12.015.


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