Taxonomic review and phylogenetic analysis of fifteen North American Entomobrya (Collembola, Entomobryidae), including four new species

The chaetotaxy of 15 species of eastern North American Entomobrya is redescribed in order to determine potential characters for the diagnosis of cryptic lineages and evaluate the diagnostic and phylogenetic utility of chaetotaxy. As a result, four new species (E. citrensis Katz & Soto-Adames, sp. n., E. jubata Katz & Soto-Adames, sp. n., E. neotenica Katz & Soto-Adames, sp. n. and E. unifasciata Katz & Soto-Adames, sp. n.) are described, and new diagnoses are provided for E. assuta Folsom, E. atrocincta Schott, E. decemfasciata (Packard), E. ligata Folsom, E. multifasciata (Tullberg), and E. quadrilineata (Bueker). Furthermore, previously undocumented levels of intraspecific variation in macrosetal pattern are reported, tempering the exclusive use of chaetotaxy for species delimitation. Phylogenetic relationships, estimated using both morphological and molecular data, indicate that Entomobrya is likely paraphyletic. The phylogenies also suggest that unreliable character homology, likely fostered by Entomobrya's profusion of macrosetae, may limit the phylogenetic utility of chaetotaxy in groups characterized by an abundance of dorsal macrosetae.