Abstract
In 1956 Ax described two turbellarian-like animals with cuticular hooks in the pharynx, Gnathostomula paradoxa and Gnathastomaria lutheri, and on the basis of these two species he established a new turbellarian order Gnathosiomulida. Later(1960,1961) he raised this group to the rank of a class. Beside the pharyngeal hooks, the structure of the epithelium — one single cilia per cell — is regarded as the most characteristic attribute of this group. G. paradoxa was found on the island of Sylt (intertidal zone, sand and gravel) and in the bay of Kiel (sub-littoral, 3.5-7 m, mostly pure sand, but also in sand with detritus and mud), G. luthsri on the French Mediterranean coast (Étang de Salses, Pyrénées Orientales, sandy beach, subsoil water). A further species of the genus Gnathostomula, G. maldivarum, is described by Gerlach (1958), found in sand, on the Maledive Islands.
Contribution from the Biological Station, Herdla.
Contribution from the Biological Station, Herdla.
Notes
Contribution from the Biological Station, Herdla.