Notoplana suteri ( Jacubowa, 1906 ) Faubel, 1984

Holleman, John J., 2007, Some New Zealand Polyclads (Platyhelminthes, Polycladida), Zootaxa 1560, pp. 1-17 : 7-8

Notoplana suteri ( Jacubowa, 1906) Faubel, 1984

( Figures 10–12 )

Synonymy

Leptoplana suteri Jacubowa, 1906 Morphology

External features: The specimens have an elongate oval form with the largest specimen measuring 28mm long and 7mm wide when actively moving. Smaller specimens were 5 to 20mm long and 4 to 7mm wide. Tentacles are wanting. The dorsal surface is uniform light beige shading darker mid-dorsally over the pharynx and at the margin. Tentacular eyes numbered 8 to 11 in each cluster with smaller cerebral eyes numbering 17 to 21 in two spread clusters that begin behind the cerebral organ and extend anteriorly toward the margin. The pharynx is centrally located with the mouth in the posterior half of the pharyngeal pocket. The pharynx has eight pairs of heavy folds. The intestinal branches do not anastomose.

Reproductive anatomy: The sperm ducts course laterally to the pharynx turning medially to enter separately the retort shaped seminal vesicle. The ejaculatory duct is very short as it enters the prostatic vesicle immediately at the ventral side. The ejaculatory duct projects into the prostatic vesicle forming tubular chambers with the glandular lining. The prostatic vesicle is in contact with the base of the penis bulb with the ejaculatory duct immediately entering the large elongate penis which has a long curved penis stylet at the end. A penis shield surrounds the stylet as it projects into the male antrum which leads to the male gonopore. A short distance posterior is the female gonopore. The vagina ascends a short distance dorsally and then turns anteriorly as a large convoluted vagina media with small lateral chambers and channels. Shell glands surround the vagina media which curves dorsally and then posteriorly receiving the common oviduct and continuing on as the duct of Lang’s vesicle. The duct of Lang’s vesicle has a series of circular ridges that extend to the junction with the long and large Lang’s vesicle.

Three specimens, one as a cleared wholemount, one with the anterior half as a stained wholemount and the posterior half as a set of serial sagittal sections, have been deposited in the California Academy of Science., CAS Nos. 174339, 174340 and 174340 respectively.

Remarks

Bock (1913) placed Leptoplana suteri Jacubova, 1906 in synonymy with Notoplana australis ( Schmarda, 1859) Bock, 1913 based on Jacubow’s description and diagrams. Prudhoe (1982) retained Leptoplana suteri Jacubova, 1906 in synonymy with Notoplana australis ( Schmarda, 1859) Bock, 1913 . Faubel (1983) listed Notoplana suteri Jacubova, 1906 as one of the species of the genus Notoplana then in Faubel (1984) an addenda lists Leptoplana suteri Jacubova, 1906 as synonymous with Notoplana suteri (Jacubova 1906) Faubel, 1983 . Notoplana suteri differs from N. australis in significant characteristics. First, N. australis has a very thick muscular wall of the male antrum. The thickness is represented in Haswell’s (1907b), Bock’s (1913) and Hyman’s (1959a) diagrams. N. suteri does not have the thick muscular antral wall instead it has a thin muscular layer which is agreement with Jacubowa (1906). Second, N. australis has a short penis and a long curved penis stylet which Hyman (1959a) illustrated and described as “The stylet …springs from a rounded penis papilla,..” and Bock (1913) illustrates it as a small structure with the long curved penis stylet. N. suteri has a very long penis with a curved stylet. Third, N. suteri has a penis sheath which is lacking in N. australis . Fourth, the number of cerebral and tentacular eyes is greater in N. australis , cerebral eyes number 75 to 100 in each group and 56 to 60 tentacular eyes in each cluster. The cerebral and tentacular eyes in N. suteri number 17-21 cerebral and 8-11 tentacular. Fifth, the dorsal color of N. australis is variously described as light to dark brown to almost black to a greenish brown to orange and light grey. N. suteri is light beige shading darker mid-dorsally over the pharynx. N. suteri is very distinct from N. australis not only in the above five characteristics but also in size as mature N. australis specimens are more than twice as large as mature N. suteri . Faubel (1984) was correct in placing Leptoplana suteri Jacubova, 1906 in synonymy with Notoplana suteri (Jacubova, 1906) Faubel, 1983 .

Figures

FIGURES 10 – 12. Notoplana suteri. 10. Dorsal view. 11. Cerebral and tentacular eyes. 12. Sagittal view of the copulatory complex.