Kuma albiventer ( Marcus, 1954 )

Hooge, Matthew D. & Tyler, Seth, 2008, Acoela (Acoelomorpha) from Bocas del Toro, Panama, Zootaxa 1719, pp. 1-40 : 13-14

Kuma albiventer ( Marcus, 1954)

( Fig. 10 A)

Haploposthia albiventer: Marcus 1954 (p 420); Mamkaev 1967 (p 40); Dörjes 1968 (p 97); Dörjes and Karling 1975 (p 180).

Kuma albiventer: Faubel 1976 (p 35); Hooge and Smith 2004 (p 16); Tekle 2004 (p 86); Hooge and Rocha 2006 (p 1); Hooge and Tyler 2007 (p 22).

Material. Living specimens in squeeze preparations; four sets of 2-µm-thick serial sections of epoxy-embedded specimen stained with toluidine blue.

Localities. Pilings near Almirante (916’14.4” N, 82°23’21.2” W), from fine flocculent sand on top of black anoxic sand; Isla Colon (9°21’09.5” N, 82°13’52.6” W), from medium-grained sand near mangrove rhizomes; Pond Sock Reef (917’17.9” N, 82°19’39.9” W), from fine-grained sand at 2 m water depth collected from sediment surrounding a sunken boat; Crawl Cay (914’37.8” N, 82°08’25.0” W), from fine-grained sand from 1 m water depth; Isla Colon, Mangrove Inn (919.870’ N, 82°15.286’ W), from fine-grained sand at 3–4 m water depth.

Description. Mature specimens ~420 µm long when fully elongated and ~90 µm wide ( Fig. 10 A). Body cylindrical. Anterior and posterior ends rounded; posterior more blunt. Body color dark brown by transmitted light. Often with large unpaired oocytes in posterior portion of body. Male gonopore terminal at posterior end of body. Female gonopore, seminal bursa and bursal nozzle all absent.

Remarks. Kuma albiventer was the most commonly occurring acoel in our sediment samples. Originally known only from the coast of São Paulo, Brazil ( Marcus 1954, Hooge & Rocha 2006), this species was recently found abundantly at Carrie Bow Cay, Belize (Hooge & Tyler 2007).

Figures

FIGURE 10. Photomicrographs of living specimens. A. Kuma albiventer. B. Hofstenia miamia.