Checklist / Erpobdellidae / Archaeobdella / Archaeobdella esmonti
Archaeobdella esmonti
ยท Erpobdellidae
External morphology
Up to 33 mm maximum body length. The anterior part of the body is cylindrical, the posterior part is flattened with blunt lateral keels in the last third of the body. The caudalsucker is reduced and forms a small lamella. Annulus b6 is broadened, sometimes subdivided by a shallow furrow in cli/c12. The male genital pore is situated in furrow XII b2/a2, the female on XII b6 (c11/c12). The genital pores are separated by 2.5 annuli. The basic body colour is reddish-white to violet. The dorsal surface of the body is smooth.
Habitat & range
- Habitat
- Freshwater, Saltwater
- Region
- Europe
- Recorded from
- Ukraine, Russia, Romania
Biology
Predator of small invertebrates. It inhabits muddy substrates of brackish waters up to 13% and the estuaries of some rivers.
Original description
Grimm, O.A. (1876). Kaspiiskoe more i ego fauna. Tetrad 1. [The Caspian Sea and its fauna, book 1 of 2]. Trudy Aralo-Kaspiiskoi Ekspeditsii. 1: 1-168. [Proceedings of the Aral-Caspian expedition. St. Petersburg Society of Naturalists].
Sources used for this page
Picture:ISBN 9783827409270; Description: ISBN 9783827409270