Family Comesomatidae

Revised 11/09/24

Chromadorina

Comesomatoidea

Comesomatidae Filipjev, 1918

A family of free-living marine nematodes.

Marine nematodes from bottom sediments in deep ocean, shallow coastal areas and tidal flats.
Cephalic region with 6 lips and a 6+6+4 sensilla arrangement; llabial sensilla are papilliform, the cephalic sensilla setiform and in either three or two rings, the posterior cephalic setae usually longest.
Cuticle striated or with transversely punctattions
Multispiral amphids, at least 2.5 turns
Buccal cavity ranging from small and undifferentiated to dilated and sclerotized; with cup-shaped anterior and conical to cylindrical posterior and well developed teeth
Marginal tubes present within the esophagus.
Somatic setae along body length in 4 row.
Male diorchic.testes opposed and outstretched; spicules with apophyses; gubernaculum usually present
Tubular precloacal supplements in most species
Female genitalia didelphic, amphidelphic, ovaries outstretched.
Non‐sclerotized and enlarged tail tip.

Ref: Jensen, 1979; Barnes et al., 2012; Leduc, 2017

Jensen (1978) divided the Comesomatidae into three subfamilies on the basis of the the buccal cavity, structure of the copulatory apparatus, and the arrangement of the cephalic sensilla.:

Sabatieriinae Filipjev, 1934:

Cephalic sense organs in three separate circles, with outer labial sensilla and cephalic setae sometimes close together.
Buccal cavity weakly cuticularised, anterior portion cup-shaped, sometimes very small; posterior portion narrow, not strongly cuticularised.
Spicules usually arcuate, usually enlarged proximally. Gubernacular apophyses (when present) usually directed dorsocaudally and paired. (LeDuc, 2017).

Dorylaimopsinae

Comesomatinae

References:

Barnes, N., Kim, H.G., Le, W. 2012. New species of free-living marine Sabatieriinae (Nematoda: Monhysterida: Comesomatidae) from around South Korea. Zootaxa 3368:263-290.

Jensen, P., 1978. A review of the Comesomatidae (Free-living marine nematodes). Ann. Soc.R. Zool. Belg. 108: 25-27.

Jensen, P. 1979. Revision of Comesomatidae. Zoologica Scripta https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1463-6409.1979.tb00621.x

Leduc, D. 2017. Four new nematode species (Araeolaimida: Comesomatidae, Diplopeltidae) from the New Zealand continental slope. Zootaxa 4237 (2): 244-264

Muthumbi, A.W., Soetaert, K., Vincx, M. 1997. Deep-sea nematodes from the Indian Ocean: new and known species of the family Comesomatida. Hydrobilogia 346:25-57.

Riera, R., Nunez, J., Brito, M.C. 2012. Five new records of comesomatids (Nematoda, Chromadorida) from the Canary Islands.Rev. Acad. Canar. Cienc 24:39-50.

Sharma, J., Sun, L. Hope, W.D., Ferris, V. 2006. Phylogenetic relationships of marine nematode family Comesomatidae. Journal of Nematology, 38:229-232.

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