Abstract
AbstractThe springtailMegalothorax laevisDenis, 1948 is redescribed from a broad sampling in the intertropical zone: Vietnam (including type locality), Ivory Coast, Gabon, Réunion island and French Guiana. Pseudopore-like elements are for the first time reported on the trunk and legs ofMegalothoraxspecies. New molecular data forM. laevis(16S rDNA, 28S rDNA d1 and d2 and COI Barcode) are provided. The phylogenetic position of the species within theMegalothoraxgenus is analysed.Megalothorax laevisbelongs to theincertusgroup but shares similitudes with theminimusgroup acquired through evolutionary convergences (such as smooth lamellae of the mucro). Those similitudes might have created confusion betweenM. minimusandM. laevis. WhileM. minimusused to be regarded cosmopolitan,M. laevishas been overlooked since its original discovery. However, the present sampling led us to believe thatM. laevisreplaceM. minimusas the commonest edaphicMegalothoraxspecies in the intertropical zone. A key to theMegalothoraxspecies with smooth mucro lamellae is provided.
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