''Rhynchodemus'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
land planarians
Geoplanidae is a family of flatworms known commonly as land planarians or land flatworms.
These flatworms are mainly predators of other invertebrates, which they hunt, attack and capture using physical force and the adhesive and digestive proper ...
in the tribe
Rhynchodemini
Rhynchodemini is a tribe of land planarians in the subfamily Rhynchodeminae
Rhynchodeminae is a subfamily of land planarians with a worldwide distribution.
Phylogeny and systematics
Based on morphological evidence, especially the presence of ...
.
Description
Species of the genus ''Rhynchodemus'' are characterized by an elongate body that is attenuated at both ends, oval or round in cross section. The creeping sole occupies most of the ventral surface and the anterior end has two large eyes. The
copulatory apparatus has a large chamber with folded epithelium in the male atrium, without a penis papilla.
Species
The genus ''Rhynchodemus'' includes the following species:
* ''
Rhynchodemus americanus''
Hyman, 1943
* ''
Rhynchodemus angustus''
(Hyman, 1941)
* ''
Rhynchodemus aripensis''
Prudhoe, 1949
* ''
Rhynchodemus blainvillei''
von Graff, 1899
* ''
Rhynchodemus bromelicola''
de Beauchamp, 1912
* ''
Rhynchodemus costaricensis''
de Beauchamp, 1913
* ''
Rhynchodemus flavus''
Moseley, 1877
* ''
Rhynchodemus fuscus''
Moseley, 1877
* ''
Rhynchodemus graetzi''
du Bois-Reymond Marcus, 1953
* ''
Rhynchodemus hectori''
von Graff, 1897
* ''
Rhynchodemus ijimai''
Kaburaki, 1922
* ''
Rhynchodemus inopinatus''
(de Beauchamp, 1930)
* ''
Rhynchodemus marfa''
Marcus, 1953
* ''
Rhynchodemus misus''
du Bois-Reymond Marcus, 1965
* ''
Rhynchodemus nematopsis''
(de Beauchamp, 1930)
* ''
Rhynchodemus oahuensis''
Hyman, 1939
* ''
Rhynchodemus ochroleucus''
von Graff, 1899
* ''
Rhynchodemus palnisius''
de Beauchamp, 1930
* ''
Rhynchodemus piptus''
Marcus, 1952
* ''
Rhynchodemus samperi''
Furhmann, 1912
* ''
Rhynchodemus schmardai''
von Graff, 1899
* ''
Rhynchodemus schubarti''
du Bois-Reymond Marcus, 1955
* ''
Rhynchodemus scius''
du Bois-Reymond Marcus, 1955
* ''
Rhynchodemus sumbawaeiensis''
(Hausler-Gamish, 1982)
* ''
Rhynchodemus sylvaticus''
(Leidy, 1851)
* ''
Rhynchodemus vejdovskyi''
von Graff, 1899
Molecular information
The
mitochondrial genome
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA and mDNA) is the DNA located in the mitochondria organelles in a eukaryotic cell that converts chemical energy from food into adenosine triphosphate (ATP). Mitochondrial DNA is a small portion of the DNA contained in ...
of ''Rhynchodemus sylvaticus'' was described in 2025. It is 16,891 bp long and contains 12 protein-coding genes, two
rRNA
Ribosomal ribonucleic acid (rRNA) is a type of non-coding RNA which is the primary component of ribosomes, essential to all cells. rRNA is a ribozyme which carries out protein synthesis in ribosomes. Ribosomal RNA is transcribed from ribosomal ...
genes and 21
tRNA
Transfer ribonucleic acid (tRNA), formerly referred to as soluble ribonucleic acid (sRNA), is an adaptor molecule composed of RNA, typically 76 to 90 nucleotides in length (in eukaryotes). In a cell, it provides the physical link between the gene ...
genes; no ''tRNA-Thr'' was found. In contrast to the other eight species of
Rhynchodeminae
Rhynchodeminae is a subfamily of land planarians with a worldwide distribution.
Phylogeny and systematics
Based on morphological evidence, especially the presence of a single pair of eyes, the subfamily Rhynchodeminae initially encompassed only ...
with sequenced mitogenomes, there is a real stop codon for ''ND5''. In a phylogeny based on proteins from the mitogenome, ''R. sylvaticus'' is within a clade including other species of the tribe
Rhynchodemini
Rhynchodemini is a tribe of land planarians in the subfamily Rhynchodeminae
Rhynchodeminae is a subfamily of land planarians with a worldwide distribution.
Phylogeny and systematics
Based on morphological evidence, especially the presence of ...
from Oceania, but is distinguished by a long branch.
[ ]
References
{{Authority control
Geoplanidae
Rhabditophora genera