Trunk anomalies in the centipede Stigmatogaster subterranea provide insight into late-embryonic segmentation

Abstract

We describe and analyze naturally occurring anomalies in the segmental structures of the trunk in an isolated population of the geophilomorph centipede Stigmatogaster subterranea. Recorded anomalies include mispaired tergites, shrunk segments, variously deformed sclerites, bifurcated trunk, and defects of spiracles and sternal pore areas. One specimen has a perfect segmentally patterned trunk, but with an even number of leg-bearing segments, representing the first record of such a phenotype in adult centipedes. We interpret these anomalies as the effects of perturbation of specific morphogenetic processes in trunk segmentation, occurring at different embryonic stages. The variety of segmental anomalies found in this population provides insights into the developmental process of segmentation and its evolution in geophilomorph centipedes. Variation in dorsal mispairing anomalies demonstrates that segments, as traditionally defined in arthropod morphology, are not the effective developmental units throughout embryogenesis.