Typhlopolycystis limicola Schilke, 1970

Typhlopolycystis limicola Schilke, 1970

Species inquirenda

Diagnosis. Gray and opaque species of Typhlopolycystis with eyes, 0.8 mm long. The proboscis is 1/5 of the body length (see fig. 5 of Schilke, 1970). The prostate stylet and the accessory stylet are proximally attached to a “very thin membranous” ring of 62 µm (measures taken on Schilke’s fig. 5). The prostate stylet in the form of “a sickle” is 35 µm long ( 45 µm according to Schilke). The accessory stylet is 60 µm long with a sharp bent end. The seminal receptacle has the chilli pepper shape.

Occurrence. Mid-littoral sandy beaches on the Island of Sylt, Germany.

Material examined. None. The species has been described only on living animals.

Additional data. As said earlier, Schockaert & Karling (1975) consider T. limicola Schilke, 1970 as a synonym of T. mediterranea . Schilke (1960) claims that the proximal ring in T. limicola is more delicate than in T. mediterranea , and that it has a sharper accessory stylet. If the general organisation in fig. 5 of Schilke is correct, the proboscis seems to be only 1/5 to 1/6 of the body length, while it is up to 1/ 3 in T. mediterranea . On the other hand, the measurements of the copulatory organ fall in the range of variation seen in T. mediterranea . So, for the time being, and as long as no new material is available from Sylt, we prefer to consider T. limicola as a species inquirenda.