Polypheretima andresi, Aspe & Zhao & Mapile & Obusan & Zhang & Castañares & Florida & Wu, 2025

Aspe, Nonillon M., Zhao, Huifeng, Mapile, Maria Reynalen F., Obusan, Maria Christine M., Zhang, Yufeng, Castañares, Edgar, Florida, Eric John D. & Wu, Donghui, 2025, Three new species and a new record of pheretimoid earthworms (Crassiclitellata, Megascolecidae) from Misamis Oriental, Philippines, with data from the mitochondrial genome, Zoosystematics and Evolution 101 (1), pp. 389-404 : 389-404

Polypheretima andresi sp. nov.

Fig. 1

Material examined.

Holotype • adult ( PNM 4680 ), Brgy . Paniangan, Naawan, Misamis Oriental, near the quarry site of the Republic Cement Iligan, Inc. (8°23'11.6"N, 124°18'11.3"E), 410 m asl., Mindanao Island, Philippines, collectors: N. Aspe, E. Castañares, E. J. Florida, G. Marapao, 20 September 2022 . Paratypes • adults ( MSUN-A - 0001), same collection data as for holotype .

Etymology.

The species is named in honor of Andres Obusan, the son and inspiration of one of the authors of this work.

Diagnosis.

Brown worm with adult length 92–178 mm, diameter 4.5–5.9 mm; equators pigmented; 145–248 segments; first dorsal pore at 12 / 13; 8–9 setae between male pores; male openings 0.25 circumference apart ventrally; paired genital markings in xix to xxiii in line with male pores; spermathecae absent; prostates large in xv to xx.

Description.

In live animals, dorsal brown, ventral pale, equators pigmented; Length 92–178 mm (n = 4 adults); diameter 4.5–5.9 mm at x, 4.5–5.0 mm at xx; body cylindrical in cross-section, tail blunt; 145–248 segments. First dorsal pore at 12 / 13; spermathecal pore absent. Female pore single in xiv, distance between openings 4 mm (0.25 circumference apart ventrally), 8–9 setae between openings. Clitellum annular, from xiv to xvi. Setae evenly distributed around segmental equators; 60–64 setae on vii, 66–70 setae on xx, dorsal and ventral setal gaps absent. Genital marking present in segments xix to xxiii; in one individual, the right genital marking on xxiii is lacking.

Septa 4 / 5–8 / 9 muscular, and 9 / 10–10 / 11 lacking, 11 / 12–13 / 14 muscular. Dense tufts of nephridia on anterior faces of 5 / 6 and 6 / 7; nephridia of intestinal segments located mainly on body near septum / body wall junction. Large gizzard extending from ix to x, esophagus with low vertical lamellae x – xiii, intestinal origin xiv, no caeca; hearts in x to xiii, esophageal; commissural vessels in vi, vii, and ix, lateral.

Ovaries and funnels free in xiii. Spermathecae absent. Male sexual system holandric, testes and funnels enclosed in paired sacs in x, xi; seminal vesicles xi, xii, each with digitate dorsal lobe; vesicles of xi enclosed in testes sac; vasa deferentia slender, free from body wall to ental end of prostatic ducts; prostates large in xv to xx, each a single, dense, racemose mass; short muscular duct entering inconspicuous copulatory bursa.

Remarks.

Polypheretima andresi sp. nov., belongs to the Po. elongata group of Sims and Easton (1972), characterized by having a pair of genital markings on xix, successive segments in line with the male pores, and shallow copulatory bursae. Members of the group include Po. elongata Perrier, 1872 , Po. stelleri Michaelsen, 1892 , Po. everetti Beddard & Fedarb, 1895 , Po. kinabaluensis Beddard & Fedarb, 1895 , Po. phacellotheca Michaelsen, 1899 , Po. bukidnonensis Aspe & James, 2015 , Po. mindanaoensis Aspe & James, 2016 , Po. cokelat Fahri et al., 2017 , Po. elongatoides Fahri et al., 2017 , Po. kalimpaaensis Fahri et al., 2017 , Po. sahlani Fahri et al., 2017 , Po. fleischmani Aspe et al., 2021 , Po. irawanensis Aspe et al., 2021 , Po. jenniferae Aspe et al., 2021 , Po. mantalingahanensis Aspe et al., 2021 , Po. puertoprincesaensis Aspe et al., 2021 , Po. victoriaensis Aspe et al., 2021 , and Po. andresi sp. nov. Among the species in the Po. elongata group, Po. andresi sp. nov. is relatively similar to Po. jenniferae , Po. sahlani , Po. cokelat , Po. irawanensis , Po. kalimpaaensis , Po. kinabaluensis , Po. fleischmani , Po. bukidnonensis , Po. mantalingahanensis and Po. mindanaoensis in size (Table 1 ). However, the new species (4.5–5.9 mm) has a thinner body than that of Po. irawanensis (6.5–7 mm) but has a body thicker than that of Po. mantalingahanensis (3–4 mm). Polypheretima andresi sp. nov. has a wider space between male pores (0.25) than that of Po. irawanensis (0.22), Po. bukidnonensis (0.22), and Po. mindanaoensis (0.23) but narrower than that of Po. jenniferae (0.27), Po. sahlani (0.5), Po. cokelat (0.4), and Po. kalimpaaensis (0.25). The new species has fewer setae on vii (60–64) than that of Po. sahlani (78–89) and Po. irawanensis (94) but has more setae on the same segment than that of Po. kinabaluensis (<40), Po. fleischmani (50–53), Po. bukidnonensis (39–45), Po. mantalingahanensis (38–43), and Po. mindanaoensis (41–53). The new species also has fewer post-clitellar setae (66–70) than that of Po. irawanensis (79) but more in the same area compared with Po. cokelat (46–62), Po. kalimpaaensis (48–52), Po. fleischmani (59–65), Po. bukidnonensis (46–58), Po. mantalingahanensis (42–49), and Po. bukidnonensis (44–46). Notably, the new species is also similar to Po. jenniferae and some individuals of Po. sahlani and Po. mindanaoensis in having no spermathecae but differs from these species in the position of the prostate glands (xv – xx vs. xvi – xxi, xvi – xix). Gates (1972) suggested that the absence of spermathecae in species or adult individuals may result in parthenogenetic reproduction.

In a separate study, Po. andresi sp. nov., which showed to have a potential for vermiculture for the purpose of various applications, has been assessed for its gut microbiota profile. Initial results show that there is a significantly higher diversity of gut microorganisms in Po. andresi sp. nov., which have potential benefits in agriculture, bioremediation, and in medicine compared to the gut microbiota in the African nightcrawler Eudrilus eugeniae , which is a popular vermiculture commodity in the Philippines (Mapile et al. unpublished).

Figures

Figure 1. Polypheretima andresi sp. nov. A. Male pores (mp) and genital markings (gm); B. Prostate gland (p). Scale bar: 1 mm.