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18 January 2022 A New Species of Acoela Possessing a Middorsal Appendage with a Possible Sensory Function
Masashi Asai, Hideyuki Miyazawa, Ryuji Yanase, Kazuo Inaba, Hiroaki Nakano
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Abstract

Acoels, belonging to Xenacoelomorpha, are small worms with a relatively simple body plan and are considered a critical clade for understanding the evolution of bilaterians. Despite acoels' importance, however, many undiscovered species are predicted to be present worldwide. Here, we describe a new marine acoel species, Amphiscolops oni sp. nov., based on materials collected from the intertidal and subtidal zones of rocky shores at several localities along the Japanese Pacific coast. The new species is approximately 3 mm long and shows typical characteristics of the family Convolutidae, such as the presence of eyespots, symbiosis with algae, position of the gonopores, morphology of the bursal nozzles, lack of central singlet microtubules in the axonemes of spermatozoa, and funnel-like posture of the anterior end. Based on morphology and the results of molecular phylogenetic analyses, we assign this species to the genus Amphiscolops. Interestingly, these worms show unique behaviors such as swimming by flapping the lateral sides and actively capturing prey by swinging the anterior funnel. Furthermore, they possess a dorsal appendage—a characteristic previously unreported in Xenacoelomorpha—representing an evolutionary novelty acquired by this species.

© 2022 Zoological Society of Japan
Masashi Asai, Hideyuki Miyazawa, Ryuji Yanase, Kazuo Inaba, and Hiroaki Nakano "A New Species of Acoela Possessing a Middorsal Appendage with a Possible Sensory Function," Zoological Science 39(1), 147-156, (18 January 2022). https://doi.org/10.2108/zs210058
Received: 31 May 2021; Accepted: 3 November 2021; Published: 18 January 2022
KEYWORDS
acoel
Acoelomorpha
Amphiscolops
Convolutidae
Japan
marineinvertebrates
taxonomy
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