Trachelipus rathkii

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Trachelipus rathkii
Rathki's Woodlouse (33903882214).jpg
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Isopoda
Suborder: Oniscidea
Family: Trachelipodidae
Genus: Trachelipus
Species:
T. rathkii
Binomial name
Trachelipus rathkii
(Brandt, 1833)
Synonyms [1]
  • Porcellio affinisC. Koch, 1841
  • Porcellio confluensC. Koch, 1841
  • Porcellio ochraceusC. Koch, 1841
  • Porcellio parietinusL. Koch, 1901
  • Porcellio rathkiiBrandt, 1833
  • Porcellio striatusSchnitzler, 1853
  • Porcellio sylvestrisC. Koch, 1838
  • Porcellio taeniatusSchöbl, 1861
  • Porcellio trilineatusC. Koch, 1841
  • Porcellio variusC. Koch, 1841
  • Trachelipus affinis(C. Koch, 1841)
  • Trachelipus pleonglandulatusRadu, 1950

Trachelipus rathkii, also known as Rathke's woodlouse, is a species of woodlouse in the genus Trachelipus (family Trachelipodidae). It can be found across Europe, except in the Mediterranean Basin. [1] It has also been introduced to North America, where it can be found across most of the northern half of the United States and southern Canada. [2] They have been recorded as far west as Alberta. [3]

Contents

Description

Rathke's woodlice grow to 15mm long [4] . Its body is usually slate grey, often with pale longitudinal markings that create the appearance of three thin stripes. Females may show orange mottling. T. rathkii have five pairs of pleopodal lungs and two antennal flagellar segments [5] .

Habitat

T. rathkii prefers poorly drained, damp habitats and is tolerant of flooding, making it characteristic of riverside meadows and floodplains, where it may be the dominant woodlouse. It also occurs in scrub, soft eroding cliffs, gravel pits, and churchyards, sheltering under stones and dead wood, beneath bark, in grass litter, tussocks, and flood debris [6] .

References

  1. 1 2 Helmut Schmalfuss (2003). "World catalog of terrestrial isopods (Isopoda: Oniscidea) – revised and updated version" (PDF). Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie A. 654: 341 pp.
  2. ↑ "BugGuide".
  3. ↑ Li, Weichun (2022-04-14). "Trachelipus rathkii (Brandt, 1833) in Alberta, the First Report of a Terrestrial Isopod from the Prairie Provinces, Canada (Isopoda: Oniscidea)" . Western North American Naturalist. 82 (2): 205. Bibcode:2022WNAN...82..205L. doi:10.3398/064.082.0205. ISSN   1527-0904.
  4. ↑ "Trachelipus rathkii | British Myriapod and Isopod Group". bmig.org.uk. Retrieved 2024-12-09.
  5. ↑ "Trachelipus rathkii | British Myriapod and Isopod Group". bmig.org.uk. Retrieved 2026-01-08.
  6. ↑ Gregory, Steve J. (2024). "15 years on: An update to Woodlice and Waterlice in Britain and Ireland, part 1 ~ Native and Naturalised Species" (PDF). Bulletin of the British Myriapod & Isopod Group . 36.
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