The genus Oxidus Cook, 1911 is revised to contain five species, O. avia (Verhoeff, 1937), O. gigas (Attems, 1953), O. gracilis (C.L. Koch, 1847), O. riukiaria (Verhoeff, 1940), and “species inquirenda” O. obtusus (Takakuwa, 1942). A cosmopolitan species, O. gracilis, is widely found in temperate and sub-tropical regions over the world, but other species have limited distribution in restricted regions, e.g., O. gigas in northern Vietnam, O. riukiaria and O. avia in the Ryukyu Islands (Japan). Four species, O. gracilis, O. riukiaria, O. avia and O. gigas, are confirmed as different from each other in gonopod characters, coloration and body size. The status of the last species, O. obtusus, is still doubtful and requires examination of further fresh material. The phylogenetic relationships among species of Oxidus is analyzed using two fragments of the mitochondrial genes COI (Cytochrome c Oxidase subunit I) and 16S rRNA. Three species of Oxidus are clearly separated from each other; O. gigas and O. gracilis form a monophyletic sister group with O. riukiaria. The genus Oxidus is also monophyletic and more closely related to the genus Tylopus Jeekel, 1968 than to the genera Sellanucheza Enghoff, Golovatch & Nguyen, 2004 or Kronopolites Attems, 1914. In addition, an identification key to species of Oxidus is provided.

The genus Xystodesmus Cook, 1895 (most closely related to Riukiaria Attems, 1938) is retained as a taxon of xystodesmine millipedes with a relatively small body length (25–35 mm), male gonopods more complicated than just a forceps-like conformation, and with live colouration of grey-brown tergites with red, orange, or yellow paranotal spots. Seven new species of the genus (Xystodesmus fasciatussp. nov., X. keramaesp. nov., X. kumamotoensissp. nov., X. kumeensissp. nov., X. parvussp. nov., X. rebekaesp. nov., X. sesokoensissp. nov.) are described from the islands of Kyushu, Okinawa-jima, Kume-jima, Okinoerabu-jima, Aka-jima, Amami-O-shima, and Sesoko-jima, southwestern Japan. Koreoaria Verhoeff, 1937, syn. nov. is synonymised with Xystodesmus Cook, 1895, so X. pallidus (Verhoeff, 1937), comb. nov. (ex Koreoaria pallida), and X. amoenus (Takakuwa, 1942), comb. nov. (ex K. amoena) are established. Furthermore, X. variatus (Pocock, 1895), comb. nov. (ex Fontaria variata), and X. saltuosus (Haga, 1968), comb. nov. (ex Rhysodesmus saltuosus) are re-evaluated and redescribed, based on re-examination of types and of freshly collected material (X. variatus only). All new species, as well as X. martensii (Peters, 1864), X. nikkoensis (Chamberlin & Wang, 1953), and X. variatus are illustrated with colour habitus photographs taken of live specimens, to facilitate field identification.

All nominal species of the horvathi group of species within Cylindroiulus (Crenatoiulus) are reviewed. In conclusion, 2 valid species are maintained: Cylindroiulus horvathi (Verhoeff, 1897), and C. abaligetanus Verhoeff, 1901. One new species is added to the group, Cylindroiulus cambio sp. n., which is described from Rostov-on-Don, Russia. Cylindroiulus vitosae Strasser, 1962 and C. ponticus Golovatch, 1978 are synonymized with C. horvathi. Descriptive notes on the species are given, and the geographical distribution of the group members is discussed.

Ecological data on the Smooth Snake (Coronella austriaca) remains limited. Previous studies report that it mainly consumes lizards, but also mammals and snakes. Its habitat selection remains poorly understood, especially regarding prey availability. As there is limited data on the diet of this species from Central Europe, and it was considered a potential predator of the endangered Vipera ursinii rakosiensis (Hungarian Meadow Viper), we conducted a study concerning the diet of C. austriaca in one of the largest V. ursinii habitats in Hungary. We also tested if the availability of prey species affects its occupancy. Smooth Snake individuals were captured to collect faecal samples, in which the remains were identified. In the obtained samples, we found remains of lizards (65%, namely Lacerta viridis, Podarcis tauricus and Lacerta agilis), mammals (20%), insects (12.5%) and Smooth Snake (2.5%). We found no remains of V. ursinii in the samples. We used two-species occupancy modelling to test if the occupancy of C. austriaca is linked to the presence of prey species in the area. We found interactions between C. austriaca and its lizard prey, as occupancy of the Smooth Snake had a higher probability when these species were present. We found no interaction between the Smooth Snake and V. ursinii. Our results support that C. austriaca mainly preys on lizards and its occupancy depends on prey availability. Importantly, we found no evidence that C. austriaca consumes V. ursinii, further supported by the lack of interaction between the occupancy of C. austriaca and V. ursinii.

The first male of Melaphe apamea Hoffman & Lohmander, 1968 is described and illustrated based on a single specimen collected by a Hungarian expedition to Turkey in 1980. The specimen is kept in the Myriapoda Collection of the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Hungarian National Museum Public Collection Centre), Budapest.

The polydesmidan family Xystodesmidae is reviewed with respect to the millipede fauna of the Korean Peninsula. It encompasses eight species in four genera: Xystodesmus Cook, 1895; Riukiaria Attems, 1898; Levizonus Attems, 1898; and Parafontaria Verhoeff, 1936. We redescribe five species of Xystodesmus including Xystodesmus pallidus (Verhoeff, 1937) and Xystodesmus amoenus (Takakuwa, 1942). Xystodesmus shirozui (Takakuwa, 1942) is new to the fauna of Korea. The enigmatic Pachydesmus bazanensis Takakuwa, 1942 is transferred to Xystodesmus as X. bazanensis comb. nov. A new species is described, X. bifurcus sp. nov. Of the other three genera, only one species of each is known from Korea, and they are as follows: Riukiaria koreana sp. nov. (from R. semicircularis (Takakuwa, 1941)), Levizonus circularis (Takakuwa, 1942) and Parafontaria koreana (Paik, 1963). Their validity and taxonomic position, based partly on new material, is discussed. Our maximum likelihood phylogeny, estimated based on concatenated sequences of mitochondrial COI and nuclear EF1-α, supported the monophyly of these four genera. Furthermore, the presence of subclades within these clades suggests potential genetic differentiation at the population level.