Cytheridella whitmani Martens, sp. nov. is described from lakes on Cape Cod (MA, USA). The species differs from its congeners mainly by the shape of the female carapace and by the morphology of the hemipenis, especially of the distal lobe and the copulatory process. The literature on the genus is reviewed and the synonymy of the fossil Cytheridellaboldii Purper, 1974 with the type species C. ilosvayi Daday, 1905, both described from South America, is confirmed. The status of Cytheridella americana (Furtos, 1936) is reverted to that of “uncertain species”. Beside the type species and the new species, the genus currently includes only three further species from Africa: C. monodi Klie, 1936, C. damasi Klie, 1944 (with synonym C. chariessa Rome, 1977), and C. tepida Victor, 1987. The morphology of the new species is discussed in comparison with the congeneric species, especially regarding the valve ornamentation, the structure and function of the third thoracopod, the hemipenis and the caudal ramus. It is suggested that C. whitmani is a recent invasive species in the lakes of the Cape Cod peninsula. Its occurrence at northern latitudes is unexpected, as its congeneric species are consistently (sub-) tropical.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2025
During the study of rotifers collected in Eastern DR Congo, we rediscovered specimens that correspond to Monostyla dorsicornuta Van Oye, 1926. This species, which we redescribe, had not been seen since it's summary description, and lacked type material. Our analysis reveals that the animal belongs to Trichotriidae rather than to Lecane (presently considered to include Monostyla) or Lecanidae, but is nevertheless characterised by a foot structure that is remarkably convergent to that of Lecanidae, and different from all other genera of Trichotriidae. We conclude that the species and the closely related South American Macrochaetus kostei (Jos\'e de Paggi, Branco & Kozlowsky-Suzuki, 2000) belong to a new genus of Trichotriidae; the two offer a rare example of African-South American vicariance in rotifers.We further provide emended diagnoses of the remaining genera of Trichotriidae, to conform these to the new information and to address some inconsistencies in these.
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