A new and two known species of the genusDiscomyctus Thorne, 1939 (Nematoda: Dorylaimida: Tylencholaimoidea) from the Western Ghats of India with notes on the geographical distribution of the genus

Abstract One new and two known species of the genus Discomyctus Thorne, 1939, collected from the Western Ghats of India, are described and illustrated. Discomyctus mucronatus sp. n. is characterized by 0.66–0.74 mm long body; lip region cap-like, offset by constriction; labial disc well developed; o...
Ausführliche Beschreibung

Abstract One new and two known species of the genus Discomyctus Thorne, 1939, collected from the Western Ghats of India, are described and illustrated. Discomyctus mucronatus sp. n. is characterized by 0.66–0.74 mm long body; lip region cap-like, offset by constriction; labial disc well developed; odontostyle 5.5–6.5 μm and odontophore 9.5–11 μm long with asymmetrical basal knobs, total stylet length 16.0–17.0 μm; pharyngeal expansion abrupt, 51–57% of total neck length; female genital system mono-prodelphic; tail elongated to long filiform with distinct mucro at its tip. D. longicaudatus (Imamura, 1931) Thorne, 1939 and D. elongatus Dhanachand and Jairajpuri, 1980 are redescribed. D. caudatus Gambhir and Dhanachand, 1991 is regarded as junior synonym of D. longicaudatus and D. elongatus is reported here for the first time from the Western Ghats. A diagnostic key to species of the genus Discomyctus and a compendium of their morphometric characters and of their distribution and habitats are also provided. Comments have also been made on the biogeographical distribution and climatic endemicity of the genus Discomyctus. Ausführliche Beschreibung