Description of Cervidellus caucetensis sp. n. (Rhabditida: Cephalobidae) from Argentina

Abstract

A new species of

Cervidellus, C. caucetensis sp. n., is described from sandy soil associated with desert plants collected in the surroundings of Caucete, San Juan Province, Argentina. It is characterized by a body length of 395-518 μm in females and 367-495 μm in males; lateral field with three incisures extending almost to tail terminus; three pairs of asymmetrical lips, pairs of lips separated by U-shaped primary axils with two triangular-acute guarding processes, and each lip asymmetrically triangular with four tines along its margin; three labial probolae each bifurcated at one level, at about two-thirds of their length; labial probolae lacking additional tines or abaxial swelling; pharyngeal corpus 3.0-5.1 times isthmus length; nerve ring and excretory pore at posterior part of metacorpus or isthmus level; vulva located in a cuticular depression; spermatheca 24.0-34.5 μm long; and postvulval uterine sac 9.5-30.5 μm long. The new species resembles C. vinciguerrae in having asymmetrical lips and labial probolae with single bifurcations, but differs from this in its four tines on the lips (vs five) and vulva located in a depression (vs depression around vulva absent).