Marionfyfea Explained

Marionfyfea is a genus of land planarians from Antarctic Islands off New Zealand.^[1] However, a species has been described from specimens found in Europe, probably introduced.^[2]

Description

The genus Maryonfyfea includes land planarians of the tribe Anzoplanini that have a small and elongate body, with mouth just behind the mid body and gonopore closer to the mouth than to the posterior end. The mesenchymal musculature includes strong bundles of dorsal longitudinal muscles, weak bundles of longitudinal muscles forming a ring zone around the intestine, and small ventral bundles of mixed longitudinal and transversal muscles forming a subneural plate. The copulatory apparatus has an inverted penis and adenodactyls.

Etymology

The name Marionfyfea honours Marion Fyfe, for "her pioneering taxonomic anatomical work on the Terricola of New Zealand". The genus was first described as Fyfea Winsor 2006,^[3] which was preoccupied, then changed to Marionfyfea Winsor, 2011.

Species

The genus Marionfyfea includes the following species:

• Marionfyfea carnleyi (Fyfe, 1953) Winsor, 2011
• Marionfyfea adventor Jones & Sluys, 2016

Notes and References

1. Winsor . L. . 2006 . New and revised terrestrial flatworm taxa (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida: Terricola) of Australia and the Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand . Tuhinga: Records of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa . 17 . 81–104 .
2. Jones . Hugh D. . Sluys . Ronald . A new terrestrial planarian species of the genus Marionfyfea (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida) found in Europe . Journal of Natural History . 50 . 41–42 . 2016 . 1–18 . 0022-2933 . 10.1080/00222933.2016.1208907.
3. Winsor . L. . 2011 . Some terrestrial flatworm taxa (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida: Continenticola) of the Subantarctic Islands of New Zealand . Tuhinga: Records of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa . 22 . 161–169 .