Cheliplana rubescens Brunet, 1966

Gobert, Stefan, Diez, Yander L., Monnens, Marlies, Reygel, Patrick, Van Steenkiste, Niels W. L., Leander, Brian S. & Artois, Tom, 2021, A revision of the genus Cheliplana de Beauchamp, 1927 (Rhabdocoela: Schizorhynchia), with the description of six new species, Zootaxa 4970 (3), pp. 453-494 : 479

Cheliplana rubescens Brunet, 1966

Material examined. Reference material. 2 whole-mounted specimens ( SMNH 82509 , SMNH 97669 ) and 1 serially sectioned specimen ( SMNH Type 3032) .

Known distribution. Golf de Marseille, France ( Brunet 1966, 1968). Tjärnö, Sweden ( Willems et al. 2009). Sylt, Germany ( Armonies 2020).

Remarks. Our observations correspond to those of Brunet (1966). Live specimens have a bright red pigmentation and are 1–1.2 mm long. A single, subterminal, continuous haptic girdle is present. The proboscis is armed with a pair of smooth, simple, curved hooks, 10–12 μm long. The long prepharyngeal tube is provided with rows of little pointed expansions, which are not sclerotised. The pharynx possesses small, sclerotised plates, arranged in circles ( Brunet 1966).A single, large testis is located ventrally of the pharynx.According to Brunet (1966), the testis appears bilobed in many specimens. The vasa deferentia are paired and run posteriorly to a pair of seminal vesicles.

The genital opening is situated in the posterior quarter of the body. The elongate male copulatory bulb is ~100 μm long and contains a prostatic vesicle in the slightly expanded proximal part. The distal half of the ejaculatory duct is transformed into a sclerotised cirrus, ornamented with longitudinal folds or ‘wrinkles’. The copulatory bulb connects to the common genital atrium via a long male atrium.

An unpaired ovary is situated near the posterior body end. A long, slender female duct connects the ovary to the common genital atrium. A small uterus also connects to the common genital atrium. The common genital atrium is surrounded by cement glands. A large, syncytial bursa lies adjacent to the ovary and is connected to the outside world via a long, weakly muscular vagina externa. The distal end of the vagina is widened to form a small bulb. The vaginal opening is situated posterior to the common genital opening.