Stenostomum O. Schmidt, 1848

Noreña, Carolina, Damborenea, Cristina & Brusa, Francisco, 2005, A taxonomic revision of South American species of the genus Stenostomum O. Schmidt (Platyhelminthes: Catenulida) based on morphological characters, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 144 (1), pp. 37-58 : 39-40

Genus Stenostomum O. Schmidt, 1848

Diagnosis: Catenulida without either statocyst or preoral ciliated furrow. Large brain formed by a pair of anterior lobes, connected to each other by means of a transverse commissure in their posterior region, and a pair of posterior lobes. Paired ciliated pits associated with the anterior cerebral lobes. Light-refracting bodies present; number, composition and arrangement variable; frequently associated with the posterior cerebral lobes. Epithelial rhabdites and excretophores present in numerous species. Asexual reproduction as the main reproductive mechanism. Gonads known only for some species; the single testis is antero-dorsal and the ovary mid-ventral.

Type species: Stenostomum leucops (Dugès, 1828) O. Schmidt, 1848 .

Distribution: Cosmopolitan.

Valid species: See below for South American species, and Table 1 for species recorded only in other world regions.