Erséus, 1999
Type genus Parvidrilus Erséus, 1999
Number of species more than 1. In NWE, at least two undescribed species (Giani et al., 2001). Aeolosoma gineti Juget, 1959, probably belongs to this family.
Description
Very small oligochaetes. Prostomium simple. Chaetal bundles beginning from III (from II, in some forms?), consisting of long hair chaetae and short crotchets. The latter are simple-pointed in dorsal bundles but bifid in ventral bundles. Digestive tube simple, without diverticula. Testes (testis?) in XI, ovaries (ovary?) in XII, clitellum in (IX)X-XII (XIII, XIV), unpaired male pore in XII. A recently discovered but yet insufficiently known group. Presence of ventral hair chaetae is shared, among the oligochaetes, with the Australian (and marine) family of Capilloventridae; however, the latter group has many apomorphies lacking in Parvidrilidae.
Probably crawling in interstitial crevices.
Distribution
Europe, North America.
Ecology
In freshwater, groundwater.
Reproduction
Sexual and asexual way of reproduction (paratomy) have been recorded in different taxa.
Literature
Juget, 1959: 397-399; Erséus, 1999: 328; Giani et al., 2001: 65-74.