New species, taxonomist’s delight and faunist’s plight. On the variation range in Loxosomella vivipara Nielsen, 1966 (Entoprocta: Loxosomatidae)

The Entoprocta Nitsche, 1870, or Kamptozoa Cori, 1929, are a small animal class with only two orders, Solitaria Emschermann, 1972, and Coloniales Emschermann, 1972. The latter order with two suborders, Astolonata (family: Loxokaypodidae Emschermann, 1972) and Stolonata (families: Pedicellinidae Emschermann, 1972, and Barentsiidae Emschermann, 1972). The Solitaria consist of one single family only: the Loxosomatidae Mortensen, 1911, with the genera Loxosomella Mortensen, 1911, Loxomespilon Bobin & Prenant, 1953, Loxosoma Keferstein, 1863, and Loxostemma Nielsen, 1966. A quite recently established new genus, Loxocorone Iseto, 2002, is not based on reasonable generic characters, and must be rejected. At present Iseto agrees with the author (pers. comm., September 2002)

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In 1972 the author has found in a dredge sample from sandy bottoms in the Adriatic near Rovinj, SW of Sveti Ivan, 35 m, a couple of similar looking Loxosomatids (cf. Emschermann, 2007, Abb. 403 B, p. 304) from which he was able to raise laboratory cultures for half a year - with good success but by asexual propagation only (culturing conditions: in natural north sea water at 17°C ± 0,5°C in 50 ml glass vessels on a slow motion laboratory shaker, 17:7 hours light/dark rhythms and fed by cultured Cryptomonas suspensions). Though under about 500 asexually produced cultured specimens neither larvae nor traces of the neck gland could be observed. In every other feature these specimens totally agreed with Nielsen’s original description of Loxosomella vivipara. Thus the author assumes this species also to be L. vivipara, but further investigation of the entoproct fauna in this area would be desirable.

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