Polymerurus rhomboides (Stokes, 1887)

Schwank, Peter & Kånneby, Tobias, 2014, Contribution to the freshwater gastrotrich fauna of wetland areas of southwestern Ontario (Canada) with redescriptions of seven species and a check-list for North America, Zootaxa 3811 (4), pp. 463-490 : 468

Polymerurus rhomboides (Stokes, 1887)

Syn. Chaetonotus rhomboides Stokes, 1887

Syn. Lepidoderma rhomboides (Stokes 1887) Syn. Polymerurus oligotrichus Remane, 1927 Syn. Polymerurus marcolongae Grosso, 1975

Localities. Waterloo and the Puslinch district.

Material. 20 specimens.

Kisielewski (1979) hypothesize that P. oligotrichus and P. marcolongae are identical with the North American P. rhomboides based on material collected in Poland. This can now be confirmed based on the Canadian material, which is closer to the type locality in New Jersey, USA. The small oval scales are overlapping, or bordering marginally, or they are more widely spaced, depending upon the extent to which the animal is contracted. When the animal is not contracted, the cuticle shows the typical rhomboid pattern described by Stokes (1887a).