Ferronière, 1899
Description
Transparent worms, with contractile branchial disc on caudal end. Five pairs of gills, of different shape, well distinguishable in undisturbed living individuals only. No eyes. Dorsal bundles beginning from IV, consisting of 1-2 hair chaetae, 216-308 µm long, and 1-2 needle chaetae, 63-114 µm long, with slightly longer upper tooth. Ventral chaetae in foremost segments 3-7 per bundle, 100-153 µm long, with teeth of equal thickness but upper one being 1.5-2x times as long as lower. Further rearward ventral chaetae becoming gradually shorter (90-120 µm), length of their teeth equal but lower tooth growing thicker. Length 10-32 mm, segment number in zooids 18-53, in single individuals 23-152. Easily distinguishable from its congeners and even from most other oligochaetes, by the beginning of dorsal chaetae in IV.
Crawling on substratum.
Distribution
Known from Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Ecology
In freshwater. Case-building.
Reproduction
Mostly asexual, by paratomy (budding). Maturing individuals and sexual reproduction rare.
Literature
Ferronière, 1899: 255-257; Pointner, 1911: 631-634, Fig. 4-5; Sperber, 1948: 162-165; Sperber, 1950: 70-71, Figs 22, 23A; Brinkhurst and Jamieson, 1971: 364-365, Fig. 7.13A-C; Chekanovskaya, 1981: 212-214, Fig. 90; Hrabe, 1981: 56-57; Kasprzak, 1981: 111-112, Figs 272-277.