Rhynchomesostoma lutheri Papi, 1963

Noreña, Carolina, Eitam, Avi & Blaustein, Leon, 2008, “ Microturbellarian ” flatworms (Platyhelminthes) from freshwater pools: New species and records from Israel, Zootaxa 1705, pp. 1-20 : 13

Rhynchomesostoma lutheri Papi, 1963

Locality. Temporary pool on Mount Kavul and Mount Shekhanya, Lower Galilee.

Material. One individual, squash preparation, and one sagittally-sectioned individual deposited in the Department of Zoology at Tel Aviv University, Israel, Catalogue Number VR-25075.

Ecological features. Rhynchomesostoma lutheri prefers shallow pools and ponds with abundant vegetation and detritus. In Israel, R. lutheri was found in large temporary pools in the late winter months (February 2002) ( Eitam et al., 2004).

Until now, Rhynchomesostoma lutheri had only been found in Finland ( Luther, 1963) and Spain ( Gamo & Noreña-Janssen, 1998). This is the first record for Israel.