|
Land Planarians
Geoplanidae is a family of flatworms known commonly as land planarians or land flatworms. These flatworms are mainly predators of other invertebrates, which they hunt, attack and capture using physical force and the adhesive and digestive properties of their mucus. They lack water-retaining mechanisms and are therefore very sensitive to humidity variations of their environment. Because of their strict ecological requirements, some species have been proposed as indicators of the conservation state of their habitats. They are generally animals with low vagility (dispersal ability) and with very specific habitat requirements, so they can be also used to accurately determine the distribution of biogeographic realms. Today the fauna of these animals is being studied to select conservation priorities in the Atlantic rainforest in Brazil. At the other extreme, one species in this family, ''Platydemus manokwari'' has become an invasive species in both disturbed and wild habitats in the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
William Stimpson
William Stimpson (February 14, 1832 – May 26, 1872) was a noted American scientist. He was interested particularly in marine biology. Stimpson became an important early contributor to the work of the Smithsonian Institution and later, director of the Chicago Academy of Sciences. Biography Stimpson was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Herbert Hathorne Stimpson and Mary Ann Devereau Brewer. The Stimpsons were of the colonial stock of Massachusetts, the earliest known member of the family being James Stimpson, who was married in 1661, in Milton. His mother died at an early age. William Stimpson's father was an ingenious inventor, and a leading merchant of Boston in the mid decades of the nineteenth century, trading as "H. & F. Stimpson, stoves and furnaces, corner of Congress and Water Streets. It was he who invented the "Stimpson range", the first sheet-iron cooking stove, famous in its day throughout New England. He also made improvements in rifles, and suggested the placin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slug
Slug, or land slug, is a common name for any apparently shell-less terrestrial gastropod mollusc. The word ''slug'' is also often used as part of the common name of any gastropod mollusc that has no shell, a very reduced shell, or only a small internal shell, particularly sea slugs and semislugs (this is in contrast to the common name ''snail'', which applies to gastropods that have a coiled shell large enough that they can fully retract their soft parts into it). Various taxonomic families of land slugs form part of several quite different evolutionary lineages, which also include snails. Thus, the various families of slugs are not closely related, despite a superficial similarity in the overall body form. The shell-less condition has arisen many times independently as an example of convergent evolution, and thus the category "slug" is polyphyletic. Taxonomy Of the six orders of Pulmonata, two – the Onchidiacea and Soleolifera – solely comprise slugs. A third family, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polycladus Gayi
''Polycladus'' is a genus of land planarians from South America. Description ''Polycladus'' is a very understudied genus of land planarians. It was defined as land planarians with a wide, flat and leaf-like body, having the entire ventral surface ciliated and with mouth and gonopore posteriorly shifted in relation to other land planarians. The copulatory apparatus has a well-developed permanent penis and the female canal enters the genital antrum ventrally.Ogren, R. E. and Kawakatsu, M. (1990). ''Index to the species of the family Geoplanidae (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Terricola) Part I: Geoplaninae.'' Bulletin of Fujis Women's College. 29: 79-166. This definition, however, is incomplete regarding all anatomical structures currently considered in the definition of planarian genera. Etymology The name ''Polycladus'' comes from Greek ''πολύ'' (many) + ''κλάδος'' (branch), referring to the branched intestine. Despite the name, ''Polycladus'' is not a species of the fla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Timyminae
''Timyma'' is a genus of land planarians from Chile. It is the sole genus of the subfamily Timyminae. Description The genus ''Timyma'' includes planarians of elongate body and spatula-like anterior end. Although most land planarians native from South America have dorsal testes, ''Timyma'' has ventral testes, which at first suggested that it is related to the Australasia species of the tribe Caenoplanini. However, the longitudinal cutaneous musculature of ''Timyma'' is very weak, differently from other genera in this tribe. However, molecular studies confirmed that it is more closely related to other land planarians in South America, having a sister-group relationship with the subfamily Geoplaninae Geoplaninae is a subfamily of land planarians endemic to the Neotropical region. However, one species, ''Obama nungara'' has been introduced in Europe. Description The subfamily Geoplaninae was initially defined by Ogren and Kawakatsu (1990)Ogr .... The copulatory apparatus lack ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhynchodeminae
Rhynchodeminae is a subfamily of land planarians with a worldwide distribution. Phylogeny and systematics Based on morphological evidence, especially the presence of a single pair of eyes, the subfamily Rhynchodeminae initially encompassed only the species in the current tribe Rhynchodemini and was considered the sister group of subfamily Microplaninae.Ogren, R. E. and Kawakatsu, M. (1988). ''Index to the species of the family Rhynchodemidae (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Terricola) Part I: Rhynchodeminae.'' Bulletin of Fujis Women's College. 26: 39-91. The remaining tribes were considered closely related to the subfamily Geoplaninae due to the presence of multiple eyes along the body. However, molecular studies revealed that this classification was artificial and that the Rhynchodeminae were closely related to Caenoplaninae. Therefore, recent classification puts the former Rhynchodeminae as a tribe, Rynchodemini, inside an expanded subfamily Rhynchodeminae that also contains the t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Microplaninae
Microplaninae is a subfamily of land planarians. Description The subfamily Microplaninae was defined by Ogren and Kawakatsu (1988)Ogren, R. E. and Kawakatsu, M. (1988). ''Index to the species of the family Rhynchodemidae (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Terricola) Part I: Rhynchodeminae.'' Bulletin of Fujis Women's College. 26: 39-91. for land planarians with a short and cylindroid form, anterior end blunt, eyes often small and subepithelial musculature weak. The male copulatory apparatus is often complicated and has a well-developed penis. The female apparatus is very variable, with or without a seminal bursa and with or without a connection with the intestine. It was originally considered, based on morphological evidence, to be the sister group of the subfamily Rhynchodeminae. However, recent phylogenetic analyses indicated that both subfamilies are not closely related. Genera The following genera are recognised in the subfamily Microplaninae: *'' Amblyplana'' Graff, 1896 *'' Diporode ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Geoplaninae
Geoplaninae is a subfamily of land planarians endemic to the Neotropical region. However, one species, ''Obama nungara'' has been introduced in Europe. Description The subfamily Geoplaninae was initially defined by Ogren and Kawakatsu (1990)Ogren, R. E. and Kawakatsu, M. (1990). ''Index to the species of the family Geoplanidae (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Terricola) Part I: Geoplaninae.'' Bulletin of Fujis Women's College. 29: 79-166. for land planarians which have a broad creeping sole, mouth in the second half of the body, dorsal testes, subepithelial longitudinal musculature well developed and parenchymal longitudinal musculature absent or not well developed. The eyes contour the anterior region in a single row and posteriorly form several rows, which may spread onto the dorsum, and extend to the posterior end of the body. However, most, if not all, of these characteristics are not exclusive and cannot be considered a synapomorphy of the group. Some characteristics have also been ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eudoxiatopoplaninae
''Eudoxiatopoplana'' is a genus of land planarians from New Zealand, currently comprising a single species, ''Eudoxiatopoplana bilaticlavia'', that occurs in Stewart Island. It is the sole genus of the tribe Eudoxiaotopoplanini. Description The genus ''Eudoxiatopoplana'' includes land planarians with a small and robust body that is subcylindrical in cross section. The anterior end is blunt and slightly rolled upwards, showing some of the anterior ventral surface and forming a type of adhesive cup. The eyes form multiple rows around the anterior end and dorso-anteriorly and occur along the whole body. The parenchymal longitudinal musculature forms a massive ring zone around the intestine. The testes are dorsal and extend from behind the ovaries to the posterior end. The copulatory apparatus has an inverted penis, a resorptive bursa, and an adenodactyl. Etymology The name ''Eudoxiatopoplana'' comes is a combination of Greek ''εὐδοξία'' (''eudoxia''), honor + ''ἄτοπο ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bipaliinae
Bipaliinae is a subfamily of land planarians found mainly in Madagascar, the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia, although some species have been introduced worldwide. Description The subfamily Bipaliinae is characterized by having a semilunar head that gives them the common name "hammerhead worms". The head has peripheral sensory pits on the ventral side and small peripheral eyes on the dorsal side.Winsor, L.; Johns, P. M.; Barker, G. M. (2004). Terrestrial planarians (Platyhelminthes: Turbellaria: Tricladida: Continenticola) predaceous on terrestrial gastropods. ''In'': Barker, G. (ed.), ''Natural Enemies of Terrestrial Molluscs'', pp. 227-278. Genera Species in the subfamily Bipaliinae are grouped in the following genera: *'' Bipalium'' Stimpson, 1857 *'' Humbertium'' Ogren & Sluys, 2001 *'' Novibipalium'' Kawakatsu et al., 1998 *'' Diversibipalium'' Kawakatsu et al., 2002 Bipaliin as invasive species Several hammerhead flatworms have become invasive, the most fa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nervous System
In biology, the nervous system is the highly complex part of an animal that coordinates its actions and sensory information by transmitting signals to and from different parts of its body. The nervous system detects environmental changes that impact the body, then works in tandem with the endocrine system to respond to such events. Nervous tissue first arose in wormlike organisms about 550 to 600 million years ago. In vertebrates it consists of two main parts, the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system (PNS). The CNS consists of the brain and spinal cord. The PNS consists mainly of nerves, which are enclosed bundles of the long fibers or axons, that connect the CNS to every other part of the body. Nerves that transmit signals from the brain are called motor nerves or '' efferent'' nerves, while those nerves that transmit information from the body to the CNS are called sensory nerves or '' afferent''. Spinal nerves are mixed nerves that serve both fu ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhabdite
Rhabdites (from Greek, ''rhabdos'', rod) are rodlike structures in the cells of the epidermis or underlying parenchyma in certain turbellarians, and in the epidermis of nemertea Nemertea is a phylum of animals also known as ribbon worms or proboscis worms, consisting of 1300 known species. Most ribbon worms are very slim, usually only a few millimeters wide, although a few have relatively short but wide bodies. Many h ...ns. They are discharged in mucous secretions. They are a defensive mechanism, which dissolve in water, and they are distasteful to most animals who would prey on rhabditid worms. In nemerteans, rhabdites form mucus on which the animals glide. Notes Skin anatomy {{animal-anatomy-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
