Biodiversity of intertidal marine flatworms (Polycladida, Platyhelminthes) in southeastern Australia
Author
Rodríguez, Jorge
0000-0003-4242-6053
Author
Hutchings, Pat A.
0000-0001-7521-3930
Author
Williamson, Jane E.
0000-0003-3627-4508
text
Zootaxa
2021
2021-08-23
5024
1
1
63
http://dx.doi.org/10.11646/zootaxa.5024.1.1
journal article
10.11646/zootaxa.5024.1.1
1175-5326
5258775
81B95F8A-43CD-4273-8F25-5AC5405AC1C9
Diposthus popeae
Hyman, 1959
(
Fig. 20
)
Diposthus popeae
Hyman, 1959: 15
, figs 19–21.
Material examined
:
One
specimen sagittally sectioned.
AM
W.53209 (5 slides). A specimen was collected at low tide under rocks from
Australia
,
New South Wales
,
Bottle
&
Glass
,
33°50’53.9”S
,
151°16’12.3”E
.
Coll. Jorge Rodriguez
and
Justin McNab
,
October 25
th
, 2019
. Additional material
from
Australia
,
New South Wales
,
Long Reef
from the collections of the
Australian Museum
:
AM
W.3699 (
holotype
), W. 3700
.
Remarks:
Hyman (1959)
remarks the poor condition of the preserved specimen in the original description and the difficulties of reconstructing the male copulatory system. Based on the studied specimen from Bottle & Glass,
Diposthus popeae
Hyman, 1959
possesses a slender body shape with white dorsal colouration and a pair of pseudotentacles in the anterior margin (
Fig. 20A, B, D
). Internally, the gonopores lie very close together, the male copulatory system is directed perpendicularly and consists of a thick and enlarged seminal vesicle and a long and slender penis papilla (
Fig. 20C, E, F
). The
type
and only other species of the genus,
D. corallicola
Woodworth, 1898
, from the Great Barrier Reef appears to have prostate tissue in a fold adjacent to the penis papilla and separate from the rest of the male copulatory system. In the studied specimen of
D. popeae
such organ cannot be found; instead, it appears the glandular function is carried out by the penis itself, having glandular tissue (
Fig. 20F
) similar to the case of the ejaculatory duct of
Tripylocelis typica
Haswell, 1907
. The female system consists of a vertically running vagina externa that turns posteriorly after connecting with the vagina interna and is provided with a circular Lang’s vesicle. A pair of cement pouches are also present (
Fig. 20F
).
Distribution:
Australia
,
New South Wales
, Long Reef (
Hyman 1959
).