Species ID
OC-SP-0002909
Discovered
Phylum
Nemertea
Species ID
OC-SP-0002909
Provisional Species Name
Drepanophoridae sp_SMTM005
Lowest Valid Taxon Name in WoRMS
Drepanophoridae
Lowest Known Rank
Family
Status
Discovered
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Embargo
No
Kingdom
Animalia
Phylum
Nemertea
Class
Hoplonemertea
Order
Polystilifera
Family
Drepanophoridae
Date Identified
07/08/2025
Taxonomic Remarks
Resembles and most closely related to two closely related and co-occurring species Drepanophoridae sp. SMTM006 and Drepanophoridae sp. SMTM042 (the latter previously sequences from Palau), from which it differs by having the dark brown pigment band, and COI sequence (4-5% divergent). Circumscriptions of current families and genera of reptant polystiliferans are based on characters of internal anatomy, many of which have been shown to not be reliable indicators of relationships, and await testing with molecular phylogenies. On the other hand, most species that have been sequenced remain unidentified beyond the level of infraorder Reptantia. Placement in the family Drepanophoridae is putative, and the genus remains to be determined. Five species of reptant polystiliferous nemerteans have been collected off the southern coast of Timor by the Siboga Expedition in January 1900, and reported by Stiasni-Wijnhoff (1936): Drepanobanda trilineata, Drepanophorina argus, Punnettia maldivensis, Punnettia timorensis, and Siboganemertes weberi. Unfortunately, colour in life is not known for any of these species, and descriptions are based almost exclusively on internal anatomy. Recent studies have shown that internal anatomy does not allow to differentiate between closely related nemertean species. The only information on external appearance available is for D. trilineata (three dorsal longitudinal stripes), and D. argus (over 200 small ocelli). Based on this we can conclude that specimens listed here definitely do not belong to these two species. S. weberi is a bathyal species, and can be excluded on that ground. Furthermore, our sampling was restricted to the northern coast of Timor, which has substantially different oceanographic conditions, types of habitat, and fauna compared to the south coast. Both P. timorensis and P. maldivensis were collected from subtidal mud off the south coast of Timor (34 m), and can be excluded based on habitat alone. While Stiasni-Wijnhoff described several other species of reptant polystiliferans based on material from the Siboga Expedition (collected elsewhere in the Coral Triangle), most of these descriptions lack information on external appearance of living specimens, and thus cannot be matched to freshly collected material without DNA sequence data. While type and voucher material from the Siboga Expedition does exist (Naturalis, Leiden, Netherlands), much of it is in the form of histological sections on glass slides, and those specimens that remain in alcohol have been originally preserved in formalin, and obtaining useable sequence data is challenging, even if destructive sampling would be allowed. Given a large influx of better documented fresh material, it appears that the most reasonable way forward is to treat freshly collected species as new.
Received All Minimal Data for Discovery
08/04/2026
Description of Material
Body 12-14 mm long, 0.3-1.1 mm wide, relatively short and stout, dorso-ventrally flattened, semi-translucent, especially along the lateral margins, pale beige dorsally, white ventrally and dorsally along the margins of body and cephalic lobe, and over cephalic furrows; cephalic lobe demarcated from the rest of body by a transverse dorsal band of dark brown pigment; bluntly rounded, equipped with a mid-dorsal ridge, which is apparent as a small protuberance along the anterior margin. Cerebral organ furrows equipped with exceedingly long secondary furrows (6-7 pairs, but only 4 pairs are visible from dorsal side). Ocelli large, situated in 6 groups — a pair of rows along the anterior margin with 3-4 ocelli in each, and four longitudinal rows further posterior — two medial and two lateral, each with 4-5 ocelli. Posterior tapering to a bluntly rounded tip. Intestinal diverticula show clearly through body wall.
Ecology
Associated with coral rubble.
Distribution
Only known from Atauro Island, Timor-Leste.
Scientific Name Authorship
Maslakova, Svetlana
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