Pseudoceros paralaticlavus Newman & Cannon, 1994

Marquina, Daniel, Aguado, M. Teresa & Noreña, Carolina, 2015, New records of Cotylea (Polycladida, Platyhelminthes) from Lizard Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia, with remarks on the distribution of the Pseudoceros Lang, 1884 and Pseudobiceros Faubel, 1984 species of the Indo-Pacific Marine Region, Zootaxa 4019 (1), pp. 354-377 : 358-359

Pseudoceros paralaticlavus Newman & Cannon, 1994

( Fig. 3 )

Pseudoceros paralaticlavus Newman & Cannon, 1994: 232 –233, figs 25A–C, 48F.

Material examined. AM W.44678, MI QLD 2400, sagittally sectioned.

Description. Elongated body is 7 mm long and 3 mm wide. Dorsal colour pattern is black background, with a whitish longitudinal medial band that is discontinuous and thin. It begins behind the eyespot and continues through almost the posterior end of the body; there are two additional marginal bands (inner to outer): wide white and yellow ( Fig. 3 A). Sucker is near female pore. Seminal vesicle is small, elongated and flattened, oriented anterioposteriorly. Prostatic vesicle is spherical. Ejaculatory duct is narrow, sinuous. Prostatic duct is long and wide. Penis papilla is armed with a short conical stylet inside a shallow male atrium ( Fig. 3 B, C). Female genital complex ( Fig. 3 C) is immature.

Remarks. The description of P. paralaticlavus ( Newman & Cannon 1994b) refers to a cream-white longitudinal band with an inner white line. The examined specimen lacks the white line, and the cream-white band is narrow. However, the small size of the specimen, together with the immaturity of the female reproductive system, suggests that the colour pattern may vary during the life cycle, and may not be completely developed.

The colour pattern of Pseudoceros paralaticlavus resembles the pigmentation pattern of P. jebborum . However, the background colour in P. jebborum is white with black and white marginal bands, while in P. paralaticlavus the background colour is black with white (or cream-white) bands. The white coloured area in P. jebborum is much extense than in P. paralaticlavus . Additionally, a narrow white line is present in mature specimens of P. paralaticlavus , which is absent in P. jebborum ( Newman & Cannon 1994b). Moreover, the stylet in P. paralaticlavus is short and conical, while in P. jebborum it is long and very narrow; the prostatic vesicle is spherical in P. paralaticlavus , but clearly oval in P. jebborum . Finally, the sucker is near the female pore in P. paralaticlavus , but in the middle of the body, far from the female pore, in P. jebborum .

Distribution. Previously found at Heron Island, One Tree Island, Lizard Island and Moreton Bay, Australia ( Newman & Cannon 1994b, 1998), Laing Island and Mandang, Papua New Guinea ( Newman & Cannon 1994b, 1998), and Lakshadweep Island, India ( Apte & Pitale 2011).

Figures

FIGURE 3. Pseudoceros paralaticlavus Newman & Cannon, 1994, AM W. 44678, MI QLD 2400. A. Live specimen; B. Histological sections of the reproductive system; C. Sagittal reconstruction of the reproductive system, anterior to the left in B, C. Abbreviations: fp = female pore, i = intestine, ma = male atrium, p = pharynx, pv = prostatic vesicle, s = stylet, su = sucker, sv = seminal vesicle.