Notogynaphallia Explained

Notogynaphallia is a genus of land planarians from South America.

Description

The genus Notogynaphallia is characterized by having a small-to-medium, slender body with nearly parallel margins. The eyes are arranged along the body margins and may or not spread to the dorsum.^{[1] [2]} The copulatory apparatus lacks a permanent penis, i. e., the penis is formed during copulation by folds in the male atrium. The male part of the copulatory apparatus also lacks an ejaculatory duct, so that the prostatic vesicle opens directly into the male atrium. The female atrium is usually irregular and narrow and the ovovitelline ducts join each other behind it.

Etymology

The name Notogynaphallia comes from Greek νότος (back) + γυνή (female) + ἀ (without) + φαλλός (phallus, penis), i.e., "dorsal female without penis", referring to ovovitelline ducts entering the female atrium dorsally and the absence of a permanent penis.^[3]

Species

There are nine species assigned to the genus Notogynaphallia:

• Notogynaphallia biseminalis (Riester, 1938)
• Notogynaphallia fortuita Negrete, Gira & Brusa, 2019^[4]
• Notogynaphallia froehlichae
• Notogynaphallia modesta
• Notogynaphallia mourei
• Notogynaphallia nawei
• Notogynaphallia parca
• Notogynaphallia plumbea
• Notogynaphallia sexstriata
• Notogynaphallia urku ^[5]

Also, there are some species currently considered incertae sedis:

• Notogynaphallia andina
• Notogynaphallia atra
• Notogynaphallia garua
• Notogynaphallia quinquestriata

Several species formerly placed in Notogynaphallia are currently placed in the genera Imbira and Luteostriata.

Notes and References

1. 10.1111/zsc.12019. Molecular phylogeny of Geoplaninae (Platyhelminthes) challenges current classification: Proposal of taxonomic actions. Zoologica Scripta. 42. 5. 508. 2013. Carbayo . F. . Álvarez-Presas . M. . Olivares . C. U. T. . Marques . F. P. L. . Froehlich . E. X. M. . Riutort . M. .
2. Negrete . Lisandro . Leal-Zanchet . Ana Maria . Brusa . Francisco . A new species of Notogynaphallia (Platyhelminthes, Geoplanidae) extends the known distribution of land planarians in Chacoan province (Chacoan subregion), South America . Zoological Studies . 54 . 1 . 2015 . 58 . 1810-522X . 10.1186/s40555-015-0136-5. free .
3. Ogren . Robert E. . Kawakatsu . Masaharu . Index to the species of the family Geoplanidae (Turbellaria, Tricladida, Terricola) Part I: Geoplaninae . The Bulletin of Fuji Women's College . Series 2 . 28 . 1990 . 79–166 .
4. Negrete . Lisandro . Gira . Rafael Díaz . Brusa . Francisco . Two new species of land planarians (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida, Geoplanidae) from protected areas in the southern extreme of the Paranaense Rainforest, Argentina . Zoologischer Anzeiger . 279 . 2019 . 38–51 . 0044-5231 . 10.1016/j.jcz.2019.01.002.
5. Negrete . Lisandro . Vega Tuesta . Leyli . Brusa . Francisco . A new species of land planarian (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida: Geoplanidae) from the Amazonian lowlands, Peru . Journal of Natural History . 15 February 2023 . 57 . 5–8 . 330–342 . 0022-2933 . 1464-5262 . 10.1080/00222933.2023.2185550 .