Abstract:

The diplopod fauna of Georgia, Transcaucasia, is very rich given the country’s relatively small territory, presently comprising 95 species from 42 genera, 12 families, and seven orders. Most of the Diplopoda known from Georgia are subendemics (39 species, or 38%), shared with one or more neighbouring countries, but another 33 species (33%) are strict endemics, nearly all highly localized, including 12 presumed troglobites. Several genera are likewise endemic to Georgia, including a few troglobionts. Within Georgia, the fauna of the western part (= Colchis) is particularly rich and diverse, the faunas of the central and eastern parts of the country growing increasingly depauperate inland and apparently following a rather gradual climatic aridisation gradient from west (the Black Sea coast) to east (Armenia and Azerbaijan). Much more work to include alpine and cave environments is required in order to reveal and refine the real diversity of Georgia’s Diplopoda.

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