Specimen image via iDigBio · CC0
Parafontaria
Sign in to saveParafontaria is a genus of "flat-backed" millipedes (order Polydesmida) consisting of 14 species native to Japan and Korea. Parafontaria laminata armigera, formerly called train millipedes, has been synonymized with P. laminata. This is because some populations exhibit periodical swarming behavior during which large numbers congregate and can impact train passage when this congregation occurs on tracks. Documentation of this event goes back to 1920. Individuals vary from around as adults, and feed on leaf litter as well as soil, making them comparable to earthworms in facilitating decompositio
Species
GENUS
- KingdomAnimalia
- PhylumArthropoda
- ClassDiplopoda
- OrderPolydesmida
- FamilyXystodesmidae
via GBIF
Museum specimens
- Specimen records
- 3
- With media
- 1
- Family
- Xystodesmidae
- Collections
- VPI
- Recorded in
- Japan
Wikidata facts
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- taxon
- Parent taxon
- Xystodesmidae
- Image
- Midoribaba yasude 02.jpg
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- Parafontaria
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- Parafontaria
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Encyclopedic overview
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- Species
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Parafontaria is a genus of "flat-backed" millipedes (order Polydesmida) consisting of 14 species native to Japan and Korea. Parafontaria laminata armigera, formerly called train millipedes, has been synonymized with P. laminata. This is because some populations exhibit periodical swarming behavior during which large numbers congregate and can impact train passage when this congregation occurs on tracks. Documentation of this event goes back to 1920. Individuals vary from around as adults, and feed on leaf litter as well as soil, making them comparable to earthworms in facilitating decomposition and soil nutrient cycling.
==Species== Parafontaria crenata Shinohara, 1986 Parafontaria doenitzi (Karsch, 1880) Parafontaria erythrosoma (Takakuwa, 1942) Parafontaria falcifera (Verhoeff, 1936) Parafontaria ishiii Shinohara, 1986 Parafontaria koreana (Paik, 1963) Parafontaria laminata (Attems, 1909) This species is poisonous. Parafontaria longa Shinohara, 1986 Parafontaria shiraiwaensis Shinohara, 1986 Parafontaria spathulata (Miyosi, 1951) Parafontaria takakuwai (Shinohara in Takashima & Shinohara, 1957) Parafontaria terminalis (Takakuwa, 1942) Parafontaria tokaiensis Tanabe, 2002 Parafontaria tonominea (Attems, 1899)
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Parafontaria” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.