Tasmanian Thipsels

A research blog

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Failed search for M1 at West Takone

As mentioned in the last post, I wanted to look next for thipsel M1 where it had been collected in 1999, near West Takone in the Northwest.

That site is marked with a red dot in the map above. The black dots are also millipede collecting sites, and between 1993 and 2017 those sites yielded 16 native millipede species:

Asphalidesmus leae
Atrophotergum silvaticum
Australeuma simile
Equestrigonus tasmaniensis
Gasterogramma psi
Gasterogramma wynyardense
Lissodesmus latus
Lissodesmus perporosus
Paredrodesmus sp.
Procophorella innupta
Reginaterreuma tarkinensis
Tasmaniosoma compitale
Tasmanocambala greeni
(thipsel) M1
(thipsel) M16
(thipsel) M17

Today I searched rainforest at 3 more sites (black crosses on the map above) but only found 1 thipsel, a female and hence not identifiable. I added 2 more species to the local list, though, namely Amastigogonus hellyeri and Somethus sp. (juvenile).

The search reminded me how phenomenally abundant Equestrigonus tasmaniensis can be in wet forest, in this case oldgrowth Nothofagus/Atherosperma rainforest. Large numbers of this iulomorphid were in the soil, in leaf litter, in rotting wood and under moss at all 3 sites.

This particular forest area is easily accessible and not too far from my home, so I'll probably continue the M1 campaign there in coming weeks.

2026-10-26