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Abstract
This study describes two new freshwater otoplanid species (Platyhelminthes, Proseriata), Itaspiella parana n. sp. and Philosyrtis rauli n. sp., from interstitial habitats of the middle Paraná river (Argentina) and lower Uruguay river (Uruguay), respectively. Kata sp. from the Uruguay river is briefly characterized. This is the first report of otoplanids from freshwater environments of South America. The studied areas are particular biotopes. At present, only a few studies on the turbellarian fauna and its ecology have been carried out in the Paraná river and the records presented here are the first for the Uruguay river. The main difference between other known otoplanid species and Itaspiella parana, Philosyrtis rauli and Kata sp. is their ecological characterization. Until now the family Otoplanidae was known only from marine environments, with a few exceptions.
Acknowledgements
We thank CONICET for the financial support (PIP no. 02762, Damborenea) and the staff of the Instituto Nacional de Limnología (INALI) and the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (Madrid, Spain) for their help. The field work in the Uruguay river was carried out through an agreement between the Comisión Administradora del Río Uruguay (CARU) and Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo (FCNyM, UNLP).