A new species of free-living marine nematode, Diplolaimella ariakensis n. sp. (Nematoda: Monhysteridae) from the Ariake Sea, Japan

A new species of free-living marine nematode, Diplolaimella ariakensis n. sp., is described from a muddy tidal flat of the Ariake Sea, southern Japan. Diplolaimella ariakensis n. sp. differs from its congeners by the following: Presence of ocelli, absence of denticles in the buccal cavity, a long tail (11-14 cloacal body diam., c = 3.2-4.0 in male, 17-21 anal body diam., c = 2.9-3.4 in female), spicules as long as 1.4-1.8 cloacal body diam., gubernaculum 0.4-0.5 cloacal body diam. long with a dorsocaudal apophysis 0.5-0.7 cloacal body diam. long, presence of a precloacal supplement, absence of postcloacal papillae, presence of seven pairs of body pores in male, and the anterior position of the vulva (V = 43-46). A dichotomous key to Diplolaimella species is provided. Almost full-length 18S rRNA and partial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I gene sequences were determined for D. ariakensis n. sp. A maximum likelihood tree of 18S sequences supported a close relationship between D. ariakensis n. sp. and D. dievengatensis.