Mesostoma ehrenbergii
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Live specimen
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Platyhelminthes
Order: Rhabdocoela
Family: Typhloplanidae
Genus: Mesostoma
Species:
M. ehrenbergii
Binomial name
Mesostoma ehrenbergii
(Focke, 1836)

Mesostoma ehrenbergii is a species of rhabdocoel flatworms in the family Typhloplanidae.[1]

Description

The species is comparatively large for microturbellarians,[2] reaching 1,5 cm[3] in body length. Its body is highly transparent. It is dorsoventrally flattened with the anterior end gradually tapering and broadly pointed, and the posterior end sharply pointed.[4]

Taxonomy

It was described by Gustav Woldemar Focke as Planaria ehrenbergii in 1836.[1][5] The specific name references Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg.[5]

Distribution and habitat

The species has been recorded in Argentina, Brazil, Europe, Iran, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, New Zealand, Peru, Siberia, Trinidad, and the USA.[1] It typically occurs in ponds and lakes.[2]

Ecology and behavior

The animal primarily feeds on cladocerans, but also on fairy shrimps, naidid oligochaetes, large rotifers and mosquito larvae. It is able to produce two types of eggs, subitaneous eggs and dormant eggs.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Mesostoma ehrenbergii". Turbellarian taxonomic database. Retrieved 2021-05-14.
  2. 1 2 3 Young, J. O. (2001). Keys to the freshwater microturbellarians of Britain and Ireland. Ambleside: Freshwater Biological Association. p. 87.
  3. ↑ Noreña Janssen, C., Damborenea, C. & Brusa, F. (2016). Platyhelminthes: Rhabdocoela: Typhloplanidae. The Netherlands: Backhuys. p. 2.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  4. ↑ Ferguson, F. F. & Hayes, W. T. Jr. (1941). "A Synopsis of the genus Mesostoma Ehrenberg 1835". Journal of the Elisha Mitchell Scientific Society. 57: 23.{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. 1 2 Focke, Gustav Woldemar (1836). "Planaria ehrenbergii" (PDF). Ann. Wien. Mus. 2: 191–206 – via ZOBODAT.
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