Abstract
A new species of the genus Dugesia is described from the Lake Ohrid region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula, forming the first fully documented species description for this genus in the Ohrid area. The morphological species delimitation is supported by complementary molecular, karyological, and cytogenetic data available from the literature. Therefore, species delineation is based on a truly integrative approach. Further, a short account on the degree of freshwater planarian endemicity in the Ohrid region is provided.
Highlights
The oligotrophic karstic Lake Ohrid is located in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula on the Macedonian-Albanian frontier
Dugesia superioris differs from its congeners in particular in (a) the dorsal course of the ejaculatory duct, with its sub-terminal opening, (b) the asymmetrical openings of the oviducts into the bursal canal, and (c) the openings of vasa deferentia at about halfway along the seminal vesicle
For the genus Dugesia a dorsal course of the ejaculatory duct was reported for the first time by Stocchino et al (2005) for the endemic Sardinian species D. hepta Pala, Casu & Vacca 1981
Summary
The oligotrophic karstic Lake Ohrid is located in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula on the Macedonian-Albanian frontier. With more than 210 known endemic species it is probably the most biodiverse lake in the world, at least when one takes surface area into account (Albrecht and Wilke 2008). Further important researches carried out during the 20th century, mainly by Stanković (1938, 1960, 1969) and Kenk (1978), contributed to a better knowledge of this very interesting planarian fauna. In his valuable monograph, Stanković (1960) in particular pointed out the extraordinary biogeographical situation of the endemic triclads in the Ohrid region
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