Odontophora Bütschli, 1874

Ansari, Kapuli Gani Mohamed Thameemul, Lyla, Somasundharanair & Khan, Seyd Ajmal, 2018, New distributional records of free-living marine Nematodes from Indian waters IV. Linhomids and Axanolaimids, Records of the Zoological Survey of India 118 (4) : -

Genus Odontophora Bütschli, 1874

7. Species: Odontophora longisetosa (Allgen, 1928)

Synonym: Conolaimus longisetosus Allgen, 1928

Material examined: 12 males and 7 females collected from Karaikal 30-50m, 101-150m, 151-175m,> 176m depths (20.12.2008) ; Parangipettai 30-50m, 76-100m depths (19.12.2008) and Cheyyur 30-50m, 101-150m, 151-175m depths (18.12.2008) .

de Man ratio: a b c Male: 56.81±0.67 8.90±0.23 10.75±0.28

(55.98-57.14) (8.62-9.16) (10.44-11.12) Female: 61.12±0.44 9.12±0.14 12.12±0.21

(60.85-61.44) (8.88-9.42) (11.91-12.56)

Description: Body length 1.9-2.5mm in male and 2.1-

2.6mm in female. Maximum diameter 43-55µm in male and 44-49µm in female.Cuticle finely striated.Six cephalic papillae. Four cephalic setae (11-18µm). Subcephalic setae in a single circle. Cervical setae present in anterior oesophageal region. Somatic short and sparse except in tail. Loop-shaped amphids (5-9µm in diameter). Buccal cavity (22-24µm) long, but anterior part often everted. Oesophagus cylindrical (273-289µm in male and 288- 301µm in female) without posterior bulb. Tail conical (4.6-5.2a.b.d. in male and 4.8-5.2a.b.d. in female), in male a pair of subdorsal setae near the tip. Spicules 35-47µm, curved, with open square-ended distal tip. Gubernaculum with 9-13µm dorsal apophysis. Precloacal supplements present, but very indistinct. Two ovaries. Vulva present at 56- 64% of body length ( Figure 7 ).

Feeding type: The specimens showed large buccal cavity that is not armed with teeth. According to the classification of buccal cavity by Wieser (1953), this species is a nonselective deposit feeder (1B).

Habitat: Sandy sediments.

Distribution: India: Karaikal, Parangipettai and Cheyyur. Elsewhere: England ( Warwick et al., 1998); European waters ( Medin, 2011); Belgium, Norway, Zuidersee, Skagerrak, Oresund and Kattegatt ( Hansson, 1998).

Remarks: The specimens examined conformed well to the earlier description of Warwick et al. (1998) except for the longer body size. The total body length described was

1.2-1.8mm and tail length 3.2-4.6a.b.d. The body length of the specimen studied at present was found longer being 1.9-2.5mm and the tail length 4.6-5.2a.b.d. in male and in female 2.1-2.6mm body length and tail length

4.8-5.2a.b.d. This is the first record of the species from the Indian waters.

Figures

Figure 7. Odontophora longisetosa (Allgen, 1928) a) entire female b) female head, c) male head, d) entire female, e) male tail, f) female tail.