Far away, so close! Integrative taxonomy reveals a new genus and species of land flatworm (Platyhelminthes: Geoplanidae) from southern South America

Abstract

Land flatworms usually show low ability to disperse and high endemicity, displaying many singletons in studies on land planarian assemblages. Thus, many species have been described based on specimens sampled in a single locality and/or on a few specimens. Based on phylogenetic analyses of concatenated COI and 18S rRNA genes and morphological analyses, a new genus and species of geoplaninid land planarian is described from central– east Argentina and southern Brazil. Winsoria gen. nov. shows, among its most outstanding features, a ventral cephalic retractor muscle and a subneural muscle layer that extends throughout the anterior region of the body. In addition, characters of the reproductive system and the phylogenetic analyses support the erection of this new genus. According to molecular phylogenies, Winsoria bipatria sp. nov. is closely related to species of Luteostriata, Supramontana and Issoca, taxa that also possess a cephalic retractor muscle. Despite its disjunct distribution, phylogenetic analyses, genetic divergence and morphological features show that the allopatric populations studied herein belong to a single species. We argue that the occurrence of W. bipatria in localities separated by hundreds of kilometres and a geographical barrier should be explained by passive dispersal.