The endemic freshwater planarian Dugesia hepta from Sardinia was described mainly by karyology and karyotype analysis and by geographic distribution. The present paper reports on the detailed morphological study of the copulatory apparatus and highlights the fact that the exclusive diagnostic characters of D. hepta are the shape of the penis papilla, the course and opening of the ejaculatory duct and the openings of the shell glands. A neotype is designated on the basis of a detailed description, and the geographic range of the species is better defined. The two phylogenetically important traits represented by the course and opening of the ejaculatory duct show an unknown condition in the genus Dugesia, diverging from the typical one displayed by the other 69 species. A comparative analysis of morphological traits of the 20 Mediterranean species of the genus Dugesia was made.
Endemic freshwater planarians of Sardinia: redescription of Dugesia hepta (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida) with a comparison of the Mediterranean species of the genus / Stocchino, G. A.; Corso, G.; Manconi, Renata; Casu, S.; Pala, M.. - In: JOURNAL OF NATURAL HISTORY. - ISSN 0022-2933. - 39:(2005), pp. 1947-1960. [10.1080/00222930500060025]
Endemic freshwater planarians of Sardinia: redescription of Dugesia hepta (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida) with a comparison of the Mediterranean species of the genus
STOCCHINO G. A.;MANCONI, Renata;
2005-01-01
Abstract
The endemic freshwater planarian Dugesia hepta from Sardinia was described mainly by karyology and karyotype analysis and by geographic distribution. The present paper reports on the detailed morphological study of the copulatory apparatus and highlights the fact that the exclusive diagnostic characters of D. hepta are the shape of the penis papilla, the course and opening of the ejaculatory duct and the openings of the shell glands. A neotype is designated on the basis of a detailed description, and the geographic range of the species is better defined. The two phylogenetically important traits represented by the course and opening of the ejaculatory duct show an unknown condition in the genus Dugesia, diverging from the typical one displayed by the other 69 species. A comparative analysis of morphological traits of the 20 Mediterranean species of the genus Dugesia was made.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.