Pheronous Inglis, 1966

Genus Pheronous Inglis, 1966 View in CoL

Diagnosis (Emended from Inglis 1966 and Smol et al. 2014).

Body cuticle smooth with or without several small scattered conical papillae. Cephalic sense organs all papillose; two dorsal onchia and one on each ventro-lateral region of the oesophagus. Pharynx slightly swollen towards posterior end. Female reproductive system didelphic, ovaries opposed and reflexed. Male reproductive system diorchic with two opposed testes. Spicules paired with or without central septum at proximal end. Gubernaculum small and enfolds the distal end of spicules with or without claw-like structures. Precloacal papillae consisting of series of four pairs or eight to nine asymmetrical small conical papillae in two rows. Postcloacal region with three or four pairs of papillae or with series of three pairs of symmetrical or asymmetrical small conical papillae arranged in two rows. No caudal glands. Tail conical with an acute tip.

Identification key to species of the genus Pheronous Inglis, 1966

1 Body papillae present, multiple papillae in posterior region......................... P. donghaiensis Chen & Guo, 2015

- Body cuticle smooth without papillae and paired papillae in the posterior region.................................. (2)

2 Spicules without central septum, four pairs of precloacal and three pairs of ventrolateral postcloacal papillae................................................................................................. P. ogdeni Inglis, 1966

- Spicules with central septum, four pairs of precloacal and four pairs of ventro-lateral postcloacal papillae................................................................................................... P. jairajpurii sp. nov.