THE GLOMERIS-TAXA HEXASTICHA AND INTERMEDIA - SPECIES OR SUBSPECIES -ALLOZYME DATA (DIPLOPODA, GLOMERIDA, GLOMERIDAE)

The taxa hexasticha Brandt, 1833, and intermedia Latzel, 1884, of the genus Glomeris have almost the same colour pattern and are distinguish ed with reliability only by means of the form of the last tergite. In the literature, these taxa are alternatively treated as species or sub species. They are distributed parapatrically with a small zone of cont act, and intermediate specimens that indicate hybridisation have not y et been found. Based on a genetic analysis using enzyme electrophoreti c data, we found very high genetic differentiation between hexasticha and intermedia. Compared with three other clearly distinct Glomeris sp ecies, G. intermedia proved to be more closely related to G. conspersa and G. transalpina than to G. hexasticha. Both G. hexasticha and G. m arginata are only distantly related to this trio. Consequently, G. int ermedia should be treated as a bona-fide species.