Pheretima balerensis Hong and James, 2025

Pheretima balerensis Hong and James sp. n.

(Figures 3(C,D), 4)

Type material

Holotype: Semiclitellate ( NMA 4807 ): PHILIPPINES: Aurora, old-growth remnant at top of hill S. Aurora, in soil ( 15.6695°N, 121.3335°E), 732 m a.s.l., 14 April 2001, S. W. James coll. GoogleMaps

Other material

Same data as for holotype, 1 semiclitellate, 2 aclitellates.

Etymology

The species is named after Baler, the capital city of Aurora Province.

Diagnosis

One pair of spermathecal pores in 7/8 at setal lines 4–5, distance between spermathecal pores copulatory bursae openings 0.10–0.13 circumferences apart.

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HISTORY

2587

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HISTORY

2589

HISTORY

61–67 at XX 2–6 between male pores, size regular, ventral setae more crowded, setal formula AA

ZZ = 2:2:3:5 at XIII. Clitellum annular XIV–XVI, setae invisible externally.

First dorsal pore 11/12. One pair of spermathecal pores in 7/8 at setal lines 4 and 5, 1.4 mm spermathecal pores, 0.07–0.10 circumferences apart. Female pore single in XIV, 0.3–0.5 mm openings copulatory bursa paired in XVIII at 6th setal line, 1.8 mm between openings, 0.10–0.13 circumferences Genital markings lacking.

Septa 5/6, 6/7 thick, 7/8 thin, 5/6–7/8 muscular decreasing; 8/9/10 absent, 10/11, 11/12 thickly 12/13/14 progressively thinner. Gizzard in VIII–X, intestine begins in XVI, small paired lymph glands XXVIII along dorsal vessel; intestinal caeca simple originating in XXVII and extending anteriorly to long tapered sac; typhlosole very low fold from XXVI, 36 intestinal blood vessels. Hearts in X–XIII; XII side very small; IX lateral, VIII to gizzard, VII lateral.

Ovaries and funnels in XIII, spermathecae one pair in VII with nephridia on spermathecae ducts mathecal ampulla broadly attached to ovate barrel-shaped muscular duct; duct shorter than ampulla nearly as wide as ampulla; diverticulum chamber elongate oval, stalk shorter than chamber,

length equal to ampulla width. Male sexual system holandric, testes and funnels in ventrally paired sacs Seminal vesicles two pairs in XI–XII dorsal lobes, small balls in shallow clefts, prostates in XVI–XVIII with muscular ducts, curved around lateral, posterior sides, entering posterior upper face of copulatory without stalked glands; copulatory bursae openings surrounded by four unequal wedge-shaped wedge-shaped penis from copulatory roof, male pore near tip.

Remarks

In this case, we filtered the information in Tables 1 and 2 for intestinal origin in xvi, absence of pigmentation, group members with 40 <setae number <60 per segment before the clitellum, and than 60 per segment behind the clitellum. Adding two more filtering characters, presence of wedge-shaped bursal pads on the floor around the opening and dorsal pores in or posterior to 9/10, the remaining taxa two provisional species ( Nueva Vizcaya spp. 1 and 3) from Nueva Vizcaya province at the Kalahan land in Imugan and P. bontocensis Hong and James 2021 . Nueva Vizcaya sp. 1 has much more widely spermathecal and male pores (0.13 and 0.20, respectively) vs 0.08 and 0.12 in P. balerensis sp.n., with setae between male pores (11 vs 2 to 6). This taxon has five wedge-shaped pads around copulatory openings rather than four as in Pheretima balerensis sp. n. Nueva Vizcaya sp. 3 has many more setae the male pores, and lacks a typhlosole, unlike P. balerensis sp. n. Pheretima bontocensis has a very similar count in the post-clitellar segments but fewer (40 vs 48) in segment VII, and both dorsal and ventral gaps rather than only a dorsal gap in Pheretima balerensis sp. n. The spermathecal duct of balerensis sp. n. is almost as wide as the ampulla. However, in P. bontocensis , the duct is much relation to the ampulla. Dorsal lobes of seminal vesicles were not clearly present in P. bontocensis .

small balls in shallow clefts in Pheretima balerensis sp. n.

Although the material for this species does not include any fully clitellate specimens, they are mature, showing sperm production. We are confident that the morphological distinctions we make Clitellum location is nearly invariant in Pheretima generally.