Terrestrial isopods of the family Eubelidae Budde-Lund, 1899 from Iran, with description of a new species (Isopoda, Oniscidea)

Abstract In the present work, terrestrial isopods of the family Eubelidae are investigated in Iran. The genera Periscyphis and Somalodillo are reported for the first time. More localities are presented for Koweitoniscustamei (Omer-Cooper, 1923) while K.shafieii Kashani, sp. n. is described and figured. A map indicating the sampling localities for the species is presented.


Introduction
The family Eubelidae Budde-Lund, 1899 includes 50 genera distributed mostly in the tropical areas of Africa, and partly in south-eastern Asia and in the Arabian Peninsula (Taiti et al. 1991). Schmidt (2003) considered the occurrence of some eubelid species in the Neotropics due to human activities. Uropods with flattened sympodites and reduced exopodites inserting medially on the distal margin of the sympodites, presence of sulcus arcuatus on the lateral margins of the first coxal plates along with the conglobation ability are the most significant diagnostic characters of the family (Taiti et al. 1991;Schmidt 2003). Koweitoniscus tamei (Omer-Cooper, 1923) was the first eubelid species reported from Iran (Kashani 2014). In the present study, more localities are reported for the species and two more species are identified: Periscyphis vittatus Omer-Cooper, 1926 and Koweitoniscus shafieii Kashani, sp. n. The genus Somalodillo is also reported for the first time based on one female specimen. Sampling localities are presented on a map.

Material and methods
The material examined in the present study was collected in Iran since 2008 ( Figure 1). The specimens were collected by hand and preserved in 96% ethanol. The specimens were dissected and body parts were slide-mounted using Euparal (Carl Roth, Karlsruhe). Drawings were made using a drawing tube on a Nikon Y-IDT compound microscope. Color images were taken using an Olympus DP71 digital camera on an Olympus SZH10 stereomicroscope. Type material of the newly described species is deposited in the Zoological Museum, University of Tehran (ZUTC), the Iranian Research Institute of Plant Protection (IRIPP) and in the personal collection of the first author (PCGMK). Drawing and plates were arranged with the methods described in Montesanto (2015Montesanto ( , 2016 Remarks. The genus Periscyphis comprises 46 species, mostly present in eastern Africa and the Arabian Peninsula (Schmalfuss 2003;Taiti and Checcucci 2011;Taiti and Schotte 2016;Taiti and Montesanto 2018). Periscyphis vittatus is reported here for the first time from two localities in southern Iran ( Figure 1). As reported for Pakistan (Schmalfuss 2003), this species is most probably introduced to Iran. The identification of the species was based on the comparison of the characters of the specimens (Figure 2A) with the description and illustration presented by Ferrara & Taiti (1986: 96; fig. 6).
Pereonite 1 (Figs 3A, 4A) with a wide sulcus arcuatus along the lateral margin; posterolateral corner with a schisma, inner and outer lobes rounded, inner lobe more protruding backwards than outer one; posterior margin straight.
Male: Pereopods 1-4 carpus with a brush of pointed setae ( Figure 5A). Pereopod 7 ( Figure 5B) ischium narrow with concave ventral margin; merus and carpus elongated, without distinct specializations. Pleopod 1endopodite ( Figure 5C) with medial part bent outward and distal part bent inward with pointed apex bearing a row of fine setae on outer margin; exopodite ( Figure 5D) short, with widely rounded hind lobe equipped with a row of pointed setae. Pleopod 2 ( Figure 5E) exopodite longer than wide with numerous small scales and a line of setae on the outer margin. Pleopod 3-5 exopodites as in Figs 5F-H.
Etymology. The species is named after Dr. Soheila Shafiei, Ph.D. classmate of GMK, now a herpetologist in Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Iran.
Remarks. The genus Koweitoniscus presently embraces five species (Schmalfuss 2003;Taiti and Checcucci 2011;Kashani 2014, Taiti andMontesanto 2018): K. tamei (Omer-Cooper, 1923) from Syria, Iraq, Kuwait and Iran, K. rostratus Ferrara & Taiti, 1986 from south-western Saudi Arabia, K. vanharteni Ferrara & Taiti, 1996from Yemen, K. korshunovi Taiti & Checcucci, 2011 from the United Arab Emirates, and K. agnellii Taiti & Montesanto, 2018 from Djibouti. The new species differs from K. rostratus and K. vanharteni in having an interrupted frontal margin in the cephalothorax, and from K. tamei, K. korshunovi, and K. agnellii in having the inner lobe of schisma longer than outer one and the distal part of the male pleopod 1 endopodite bent inward with pointed apex. Koweitoniscus shafieii was found in southern Iran and according to current knowledge appears to be endemic to this region.
Distribution. Iran (endemic): Jiroft district.  Remarks. This is the first record of the genus Somalodillo reported from Iran. According to Taiti & Ferrara (1982;2004), pereonite 1 with a schisma and sulcus arcuatus ( Figure 6A-C), the telson with a rectangular distal part, uropod with minute exopodite inserted dorsally close to distal margin ( Figure 6D), and pleopod exopodite 2 with monospiracular lungs clearly identify the specimen as a member of the genus Somalodillo. With no available male specimens, it was not possible to identify this female to specific level.

Discussion
Despite several contributions on the terrestrial isopod fauna of Iran, especially in recent years, the knowledge on this taxon is relatively poor. In the present work, four eubelid species were found restricted to south and south-western Iran. The broad distribution of Koweitoniscus tamei can be explained by the range expansion of the species to the south-western part of Iran while Periscyphis vittatus and Somalodillo sp. are most probably introduced to Iran by human activities. The new species, Koweitoniscus shafieii, is endemic to southern Iran. It seems that southern Iran represents the northernmost border for distribution of eubelid terrestrial isopods in the region. This work expands our knowledge on the oniscidean fauna of Iran, adding two genera and three species to the fauna of the country. Prior to the present study, 41 species were reported from Iran and this contribution raised the number to 44, which is still far from the real number of species probably present in the country.