Limnatis nilotica

External morphology

Medium sized to large cylindrical, body lengths of up to 150 mm. The maximum body widih r is 15 mm. The ventral side of the body is flat. The head is the same diameter as the postclitellar part. The monostichodont jaws in the pharynx are large, with up to 50 teeth and 2-3 rows of salivary papillae. The caudal sucker is broad, almost reaching the maximum diameter of the body. The male genital pore is situated in furrow XI b5/b6, the female in XII b5/b6. The genital pores are separated by five annuli. The dorsal surface is unicoloured greenish-brown to black in living specimens. Marginally, there are two yellow to red-orange stripes. The ventral side of the body is grey and slightly brighter than the dorsal surface. On the dorsal surface 4-6 very faint dark paramedian lines may occur. The surface of the body is smooth, papillae are absent.

Habitat & range

Habitat

Freshwater

Region

Europe, Asia, Africa

Recorded from

Tunisia, Iran, Ukraine, Arabia. Meditteranean , North Africa

Biology

This species lives in small stagnant or slow-running waters, lakes and springs. It sucks blood from poikilothermic vertebrates and nasal membranes of mammals. It is not known to penetrate the skin of mammals.

Original description

Savigny, Jules-César. (1822). Système des annélides, principalement de celles des côtes de l'Égypte et de la Syrie, offrant les caractères tant distinctifs que naturels des Ordres, Familles et Genres, avec la Description des Espèces. Description de l'Égypte ou Recueil des Observations et des Recherches qui ont été faites en Égypte pendant l'Expédition de l'Armée Française, publié par les Ordres de sa Majesté l'Empereur Napoléon le Grand, Histoire Naturelle, Paris. 1(3):1–128.

biodiversitylibrary.org

Sources used for this page

Picture:ISBN 9783827409270; Description: ISBN 9783827409270