The millipede genus Poratia Cook &
Cook, 1894 is redefined and shown to be Neotropical
(Central and northern South America), with the follow-
ing junior subjective synonyms: Dominicodesmus Cham-
berlin, 1923; Tidopterus Chamberlin, 1923; Kapyrodes-
mus Attems, 1940, syn.n.; Muyudesmus Kraus, 1960,
syn.n.; and Poratioides Loomis, 1970, syn.n. The fol-
lowing seven valid species are currently assigned to
Poratia: (1) P. digitata (Porat, 1889) (= the type species
Scytonotus digitatus Porat, 1889; = Poratia heterotu-
berculata Carl, 1902; = ?Dominicodesmus panamicus
Chamberlin, 1940; = Poratioides virginalis Loomis,
1970, syn.n.; = Poratioides disparatus Loomis, 1973,
syn.n.); (2) P. mulegensis (Chamberlin, 1923) (= Xe-
rodesmus mulegensis Chamberlin, 1923; = Domini-
codesmus geophilus Chamberlin, 1923); (3) P. sequens
(Chamberlin, 1923) (= Tidopterus sequens Chamberlin,
1923); (4) P. insularis (Kraus, 1960) (= Muyudesmus
insularis Kraus, 1960); (5) P. obliterata (Kraus, 1960)
(= Muyudesmus obliteratus Kraus, 1960); (6) Poratia
fossata Loomis, 1964; and (7) Poratia salvator sp.n.
Treseolobus granulofrons Chamberlin, 1918 is trans-
ferred to Docodesmus Cook, 1896, comb.n. Poratia
digitata, as a strictly parthenogenetic form, occurs com-
monly in European green houses, also known from open
habitats in Java and the southern U.S.A. and is recorded
here from North American green houses for the first
time. P. obliterata is bisexual throughout Amazonia as
well as in Costa Rica and perhaps Panama, but distinctly
parthenogenetic in a few European hothouses. Partheno-
genesis is likewise characteristic of P. mulegensis, at
least so in the Caribbean. A character table and a key to
Poratia species have been compiled.
