Pseudochordodes manteri Carvalho, 1942

Schmidt-Rhaesa, Andreas & Menzel, Lena, 2005, Central American and Caribbean species of horsehair worms (Nematomorpha), with the description of three new species, Journal of Natural History 39 (7), pp. 515-529 : 519-521

Pseudochordodes manteri Carvalho, 1942

( Figure 2A–C )

Pseudochordodes manteri Carvalho 1942: 217–218 .

Material studied

Newly reported male from Veracruz, Mexico; LM and SEM .

Description

The male specimen is 19 cm long and has a diameter of 1.2 mm. The body colour is a medium to dark brown. Abundant elevated areoles (see below) create the impression of a finely spotted cuticle. The anterior end is white, a dark collar is not present. The posterior end was lost during preparation and therefore could not be investigated.

The cuticle contains two types of areole ( Figure 2A ). There are numerous small areoles with varying shape. Usually, they are rounded, but they can also appear in different polygonal shapes. The surface of these areoles is rough. Areoles are separated by narrow interareolar grooves with short bristles ( Figure 2B ). Few areoles are clustered in the megareolar pattern ( Figure 2A ; see P. bulbareolatus ). Among this first type of areole are abundant larger and elevated areoles ( Figure 2A–C ). They mostly occur in clusters of two. The two neighbouring areoles are partly fused, although the border between them is always visible ( Figure 2B, C ). Corresponding to the megareolar pattern, these two areoles enclose a central tubercle, which is very short and occurs, due to the partial fusion of the two areoles, in the centre of the suture separating the areoles ( Figure 2B, C ). The surface of these large areoles is smooth. They are slightly darker in colour than the areoles of the first type. Elevated areoles can also occur individually on the cuticle ( Figure 2A ), rarely these individual areoles adjoin the clustered elevated areoles. Very rarely, a clustering of three elevated areoles, surrounding a total of two tubercles, could be observed.

Comments

This specimen of P. manteri from Mexico corresponds in all details with the description of a North American specimen ( Carvalho 1942). The only difference is that what is termed here a short tubercle (on top of the elevated areoles) was considered to be a pore by Carvalho. This is probably due to differences between light and scanning electron microscopy, because the short tubercle which is visible with SEM can easily be interpreted as a pore in light microscopical investigation (compare Figure 2A and C ). The disjunct reports of this species in Nebraska ( USA) and Mexico make it likely that it has a broader distribution than could previously be estimated from the isolated occurrence in Nebraska alone.

Distribution

New record. Mexico: Veracruz, Cueva de Xometta (800 m E Atlahuilco ), 1800 m, one male, coll. 25 March 1995 by P. Sprouse (Texas Memorial Museum, Austin, USA, no accession number) .

Further distribution. War Bonnet Canyon, Nebraska, USA ( Carvalho 1942).

Figures

Figure 2. (A–C) Pseudochordodes manteri. (A) Light microscopical image showing two types of areole, single dark, elevated areoles (white arrows) and flat areoles in the megareolar pattern (black arrows); (B, C) SEM image of larger areoles. (D, E) Neochordodes occidentalis, SEM images of cuticle.