The biology and systematics of a new species of ribbon worm, genus Tubulanus (phylum Nemertea)

Most nemerteans are studied from poorly preserved museum specimens. Much of the existing data on this group of worms is incomplete at best. Only through thorough species descriptions from live animals and properly preserved specimens will we be able to reconstruct the life history relationships of this cryptic group of worms. Since nemerteans generally have very few distinctive external characters, the primary source of data used for species descriptions and phylogenetic reconstruction comes from internal morphology based on histological slide material. The goal of this project is the preparation of properly stained and sectioned material used to compare species in this particular genus. A new species of Tubulanus (Tubulanidae: Palaeonemertea: Nemertea) from southern Florida and Belize is described and illustrated. This study adds important information about anatomy and life history and yields the most comprehensive description of a palaeonemertean. This description serves as the baseline for a preliminary phylogenetic analysis of the genus.