Novibipalium Explained

Novibipalium is a genus of land planarians of the subfamily Bipaliinae (hammerhead flatworms).

Description

Species of Novibipalium are very similar to those of the related genus Bipalium. The main difference occurs in the copulatory apparatus, which in Novibipalium lacks a well-developed penis papilla, while in Bipalium a penis papilla is present. Novibipalium has a set of folds in the copulatory apparatus that are everted during mating and create a temporary penis.^[1]

Species

The genus Novibipalium contains the following species:

• Novibipalium alterifuscatum Kawakatsu, Ogren & Froehlich, 1998
• Novibipalium falsifuscatum Kawakatsu, Ogren & Froehlich, 1998
• Novibipalium miyukiae Kawakatsu, Sluys & Ogren, 2005^[2]
• Novibipalium murayamai Kawakatsu, Sluys & Ogren, 2005^[2]
• Novibipalium pseudophallicum (de Beauchamp, 1925)^[3]
• Novibipalium rhynchophorum Solà & Sluys, 2023
• Novibipalium trifuscostriatum (Kaburaki, 1922)
• Novibipalium venosum (Kaburaki, 1922)

Notes and References

1. Kawakatsu . M. . Ogren . R. E. . Froehlich . E. M. . The taxonomic revision of several homonyms in the genus Bipalium, family Bipaliidae (Turbellaria, Seriata, Tricladida, Terricola) . The Bulletin of Fuji Women's College . Series 2 . 36 . 83–93 . 1998 .
2. Kawakatsu . M. . Sluys . R. . Ogren . R. E. . Seven new species of land planarian from Japan and China (Platyhelminthes, Tricladida, Bipaliidae), with a morphological review of all Japanese bipaliids and a biogeographic overview of Far Eastern species . Belgian Journal of Zoology . 135 . 1 . 53–77 . 2005.
3. ((Solà, E.)), ((Sluys, R.)), ((Riutort, M.)), ((Kawakatsu, M.)) . Zootaxa . Molecular phylogenetics facilitates the first historical biogeographic analysis of the hammerhead worms (Platyhelminthes: Tricladida: Bipaliinae), with the description of twelve new species and two new genera . 5335 . 1 . 1–77 . 18 August 2023 . 1175-5334 . 10.11646/zootaxa.5335.1.1.