Labronema neodiversum sp. n., a new dorylaimid nematode species from West Bengal, India

Abstract

Labronema neodiversum, a new nematode species belonging to the order Dorylaimida from West Bengal, India is described and illustrated. Labronema neodiversum sp. n. is characterized by having bodies 1.36-1.58 mm (female) and 1.29-1.34 mm (male) long, curved ventrally. Lip region offset, somewhat angular. Odontostyle strong, longer than labial diameter; odontophore simple rod-like. Guide ring ‘double’. Expanded portion of oesophagus occupying 43-45% of its length. Cardia tongue-shaped with thin cardiac disc. Vulva longitudinal. Short conoid dimorphic tail (with dorsally curved peg-like structure in female, rounded in male). Male possesses 25-27 contiguous ventromedian supplements with an adanal pair. It differs from other species of the genus and shows closest similarities with L. varicaudatum (Thorne, 1929) Thorne, 1939 and L. diversum Andrassy, 2002 by having the digitate tail in females. But it differs from L. varicaudatum in the following characters: shorter body, stylet longer than labial diameter, tip of the female tail dorsally bent. It differs from L. diversum in: tongue-shaped cardia, presence of an adanal pair of ventromedian supplements, caudal papillae inconspicuous, copulatory hump absent.