Cooks’ cave millipede  (Pseudotremia cookorum)

Description

Cooks’ cave millipede is named in honour of William and Gayle Cook, the owners of Little Mouth Cave, where this species was discovered during surveys between 1995 and 1998 (1) (5). Possessing the typical millipede form, the body of Cooks’ cave millipede is composed of numerous hard, ring-like segments. Each segment bears two pairs of legs, with the exception of the first and last segments, which are legless, and the second, third and fourth segments, which only possess a single pair (6). Like many subterranean animals (7), the body of Cooks’ cave millipede appears to be unpigmented, although when magnified, its segments possess a light greyish-purple sheen, with a white glossy area in-between (1). The eyes of Cooks’ cave millipede are composed of 15 to 17 simple, light-detecting lenses called ocelli. These are grouped into five or six irregular rows, forming a darkened, roughly triangular region on each side of the head, just above the antennae (1) (6).

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