| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |  TURBELLARIANS
First discovery of stygobitic turbellarians in ground waters of Italy is due to Vialli (1937), who described the species Dendrocoelum (Dendrocoelides) italicum on material from the cave "Buco del Budrio" in the Alpine province (Lombardy).
Later on, other few species, belonging to the same family, Dendrocoelidae, as well as to Planariidae, were described or recorded from cave and spring waters of the Alpine province, the central Apennines and Sardinia (Benazzi, 1938, 1955; Benazzi & Gourbault, 1977; De Beauchamp, 1955; Del Papa, 1952-1973).
Recently, stygophilic triclads have been for the first time reported also from the South Apennine (karstic springs of Apulia, South Italy) (Ferreri, 1995).
CHECKLIST
Family Planariidae
GenusAtrioplanaria
Atrioplanaria morisii Benazzi & Gourbault 1978 (1) *
Atrioplanaria racovitzai (De Beauchamp 1928) (2) *
Genus Phagocata
Phagocata vitta (Duges 1830) (4)
Phagocata sp. (4)
Genus Polycelis
Polycelis benazzii De Beauchamp 1955 (1) *
Family Dendrocoelidae
Genus Dendrocoelum
Subgenus Dendrocoelides
Dendrocoelum (Dendrocoelides) italicum Vialli 1937 (1) *
Dendrocoelum (Dendrocoelides) collini De Beauchamp 1919 (1)
Dendrocoelum (Dendrocoelides) benazzii Del Papa 1973 (3) *
Dendrocoelum (Dendrocoelides) sp.
Subgenus Paleodendrocoelum
Dendrocoelum (Paleodendrocoelum) spelaeum Kenk 1924 (1)
Subgenus Eudendrocoelum
Dendrocelum (Eudendrocoelum) beauchampi Del Papa 1953 (1)
Family Dugesiidae
Genus Dugesia
Dugesia gonocephala (Girad 1850) (4)
Family Procerodidae
Genus Procerodes
Procerodes plebeia (Schmidt 1861) (4)
Family Dalyellidae
Genus Gieysztoria
Gieysztoria pisana Kolasa 1980 (3) *
Genus Microdayellia
Microdayellia dastychi Kolasa 1980 (3) *
Family Catenulidae
Genus Catenula
Catenula sekerai Beauchamp (3) *
Genus Rhynchoscolex
Rhynchoscolex echinae Marcus 1945 (3)
Rhynchoscolex simplex Leidy 1851 (3)
Genus Stenostomum
Stenostomum anatirostrum Marcus 1945 (3)
Stenostomum romanae Kolasa 1980 (3)
Genus Suomina
Suomina turgida (Zacharias 1902) (3)
Family Typhloplanidae
Genus Limnoruanis
Limnoruanis romanae Kolasa 1977 (3)
Genus Pseudobockia
Pseudobockia limicola Kolasa 1980 (3)
More numerous, stygophilic taxa, all from central Italy (Tuscany), are reported in Kolasa (1983): Neorhabdocoela [Microdalyellia dastychi Kolasa 1980; Microdalyellia microphtalma (Vejdovsky 1895); Adenoplea Paraproxenetes Reisinger 1924; Lutheria minuta interstitialis Kolasa 1980; Uncinorhynchus karlingi Kolasa 1977 (*); Ethmorhyncus youngi Kolasa 1977 (*); Krumbachia paludicola Schwank 1979]; Macrostomida (Macrostomum karlingi Papi 1953).
Numbers between brackets according to the stygofaunal provinces of Italy;
endemisms marked with an asterisk.
A selected World bibliography on subterranean turbellarians can be found in: Schwank P. (1984). Microturbellaria from subterranean freshwater habitats. Stygofauna Mundi: 47-56; Gourbault N. (1984). Turbellaria Tricladida. Stygofauna Mundi: 57-71; Gourbault N. (1994). Turbellaria. Tricladida. Encyclopaedia Biospeologica. Societè de Biospéologie, Moulis, Bucarest: 41-44; Matjasic J. (1994). Turbellaria, Temnocephalida. Encyclopaedia Biospeologica. Societè de Biospéologie, Moulis, Bucarest: 45-48. See also the Bibliography of the Italian Groundwater Fauna
For any information and suggestion mail to: pesce@univaq.it Thanks are due to Dr. J. Kolasa for suggestions and precious assistance
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