Pushing the Limits: New Data on the Morphology of Geophilus impressus C. L. Koch, 1847 (Geophilomorpha: Geophilidae)

Three Geophilus impressus C. L. Koch, 1847 specimens collected in Băneasa Forest, Southern Romania are described and illustrated. The sampled population represents a new lower limit for the leg-bearing segment number of this species and morphological differences to previous descriptions that cast doubt on the reliability of using size- and agedependent features of the maxillae and last-leg bearing segment when separating it from other closely related Geophilus.

A discussion on postulated correlations between number of leg-bearing segments and latitude is presented for G. impressus, as well as on the importance of the carpophagus structures as diagnostic characters among its relatives in Geophilus.