Gieysztoria cuspidata (Schmidt, 1861)

Noreña, Carolina, Eitam, Avi & Blaustein, Leon, 2008, “ Microturbellarian ” flatworms (Platyhelminthes) from freshwater pools: New species and records from Israel, Zootaxa 1705, pp. 1-20 : 7

Gieysztoria cuspidata (Schmidt, 1861)

( Figure 4 )

Synonyms: Vortex cuspidatus Schmidt, 1861

Dalyellia cuspidata Hofsten, 1907

Microdalyellia cuspidata Gieysztor, 1938

Locality. Temporary pools on Mount Kavul and Mount Shekhanya, Lower Galilee.

Material. Few individuals. Live observations, squash preparations, whole-mounted individual, and photographs.

Morphological remarks. Stylet with 3–7 spines (European specimens with 3–6 spines), but without real girdle ( Fig. 4 C). Spines are thorn-like with a broad base. The curvature of the spines is variable, in some individuals nearly straight, in others sickle-like. Length of the spines is 26.9–28.5 μm.

Ecological features. Gieysztoria cuspidata is a typical inhabitant of freshwater environments (temporary and permanent pools, springs and rivers). G. c u s p i d a t a tolerates temperatures up to 31 ºC and low salinity contents ( Luther, 1955). In Israel, it was collected from large and intermediate-sized temporary pools from December to April (December 2001, January - March 2002) and was most common in late February (Fig. 5).

Gieysztoria cuspidata shows a European distribution ( Luther, 1955; Mack-Fira, 1974). It was reported from Israel for the first time by Eitam et al. (2004).

FIGURE 5: Abundance of Gieysztoria cuspidata collected from the two largest pools at Mt. Kavul/Mt. Shekhanya during the winter and spring of 2001–2002. Pool 1 has a maximal surface area of 166 m 2 and maximal water depth of 80 cm. Pool 2 has a maximal surface area of 74 m 2 and maximal water depth of 38 cm.

Figures

FIGURE 4: Gieysztoria cuspidata (Schmidt, 1861). A. Habitus. B. Habitus lightly squashed. C. Stylet.