Gyratrix Ehrenberg, 1831

Diez, Yander L., Hernández, Claudia Sanjuan, Reygel, Patrick, Roosen, Paulien & Artois, Tom, 2018, First record of Polycystididae (Platyhelminthes, Kalyptorhynchia) from Cuba, with the description of a new genus and five new species, and remarks and the description of one new species from Panama, Zootaxa 4514 (1), pp. 107-125 : 109-110

Gyratrix Ehrenberg, 1831

Gyratrix hermaphroditus Ehrenberg, 1831 species complex

Material and distribution in Cuba. Observations on live animals. Thirty-seven specimens whole mounted: one from Macabí (April 23, 2017), four from Nicaro (January 28, 2016 & March 10, 2016), one from Las Sardinas (June 24, 2016), one from El Guaimaral (June 23, 2016), one from Bahía Larga (April 5, 2017), two from Bahía de Santiago de Cuba (February 28, 2016 & January 31, 2017), 15 from Aguadores (January 24, 2017 & February 14, 2017), and 12 from Siboney (February 7, 2016, May 16, 2016, March 22, 2017 & April 4, 2017). The species was found in a wide range of habitats including sandy and sandy-muddy bottoms, from the intertidal to 1 m depth. Furthermore, the species was collected on algae ( Ulva lactuca , U. flexuosa and Gracilaria sp.) and seagrass ( Thalassia testudinum ), in salinity range of 25–35 ‰.

Remarks. The fact that G. hermaphroditus is a species complex consisting of dozens of cryptic species is very well known (see Curini-Galletti & Puccinelli 1990, 1994, 1998; Artois & Schockaert 2001; Artois & Tessens 2008). The specimens collected in Cuba show differences in length and detailed morphology of the stylets, and in the shape of the ovaries (kidney or globular shaped), corresponding to 10 morphospecies. Considering the taxonomic complexity of the genus, we prefer to wait for DNA studies to fully describe these species.