How to translate text using browser tools
1 April 2017 A New Species of Orobdella (Hirudinida: Arhynchobdellida: Orobdellidae) from Japan Reveals the Function of the Orobdella Gastroporal Duct
Takafumi Nakano
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

A quadrannulate species of Orobdella, O. kanaekoikeae sp. nov., from the mountainous region of Shikoku, Japan is described. This new species is small with a body length of mature individuals reaching only ca. 5 cm. Phylogenetic analyses using nuclear 18S, histone H3, mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I, tRNACys, tRNAMet, 12S rRNA, tRNAVal, 16S rRNA, tRNALeu, and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 1 markers showed that O. kanaekoikeae is a sister species of the quadrannulate small O. brachyepididymis. Phylogenetic relationships among populations of this new species were also estimated using mitochondrial DNA markers. Additionally, transmission electron micrographs of a capsule-like structure obtained from a post-copulatory individual revealed that the capsule contained spermatozoa, and was thus defined as the spermatophore. The gastroporal duct of Orobdella leeches is an accessory copulatory organ that receives a spermatophore during copulation.

© 2017 Zoological Society of Japan
Takafumi Nakano "A New Species of Orobdella (Hirudinida: Arhynchobdellida: Orobdellidae) from Japan Reveals the Function of the Orobdella Gastroporal Duct," Zoological Science 34(2), 161-172, (1 April 2017). https://doi.org/10.2108/zs160167
Received: 10 October 2016; Accepted: 1 December 2016; Published: 1 April 2017
KEYWORDS
Erpobdelliformes
gastroporous
macrophagous
molecular phylogeny
spermatophore
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top