Abstract
A new species of marine Gastrotricha from Brazil is described and discussed. Ptychostomella lamelliphora sp. n. is one of the several new taxa that were found during an extensive survey of the gastrotrich fauna carried out in 2002 and 2003 along the coastline of the State of São Paulo. The new species is unique in that it possesses cuticular ornamentations in the form of plate-like structures (scales) along the lateral borders of the body and two massive clusters of densely packed adhesive tubes on the ventral surface, near the ano-genital opening. Both these features appear to be adaptations to challenge the high energy waters that characterize the species’ microhabitat: the coarse sublittoral sand in the channel between the mainland and the largest island in the State, Ihlabela. Additionally, a key to the described Ptychostomella species of the world is provided.
Highlights
The study is part of a larger research program aimed at shedding light on the diversity of marine invertebrates of the northern coasts of the State of São Paulo, Brazil
Found gastrotrichs were mounted on glass slides and observed in vivo with Nomarski differential interference contrast optics using a Zeiss Axioscop 2 Plus microscope
Gastrotrichs were rinsed in 0.2 M cacodylate buffer, dehydrated through a graded ethanol series, critical point-dried using CO2, mounted on aluminium stubs, sputter coated with gold-palladium and observed with a Philips XL 30 scanning electron microscope at the author’s Institution
Summary
The study is part of a larger research program aimed at shedding light on the diversity of marine invertebrates of the northern coasts of the State of São Paulo, Brazil (see Migotto and Tiago 1999). Samples containing the new species were collected in 2002 from the sublittoral of Praia Grande and Beluga both on the Ilhabela side of the São Sebastião channel.
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