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The World of Protozoa, Rotifera, Nematoda and Oligochaeta

Clitellio

Clitellio Savigny, 1820 (ref. ID; 1257, 3692)

Family Tubificidae (ref. ID; 1257, 1928)

Family Tubificidae: Subfamily Tubificinae (ref. ID; 5857, 5882)

ref. ID; 1663

Dorsal and ventral setae different. Ventral setae bifurcate, dorsal setae bifurcate or mixture of two or three types. Four bundles of an indeterminate number each per segment. Worm usually reddish. Coelomocytes sparse or absent. Without gills. Prostates and atria of different form. Atrium with one or two prostate glands, or prostate glands diffuse. Prostates diffuse. (ref. ID; 1663)

ref. ID; 5945

The genus was emended by Brinkhurst (1966) to include Heterodrilus Pier., and, while Jamieson (1977) upheld the union of these two after describing H. arenicolus queenslandicus, we must now concur with Hrabe (1967) in separating the genera. Clitellio, sensu strictu, has spermatozeugmata rather than loose sperm or organized sperm bundles in the spermathecae of mated worms, has true penes and is in all respects, bar the absence of prostate glands external to the atria, a true tubificine. The single identifiable species, C. arenarius (Muller, 1776) is Atlantic boreal in distribution. (ref. ID; 5945)
  1. Clitellio arenarius (O.F. Muller, 1776) (ref. ID; 1257, 3692, 6208) reported year? (ref. ID; 1928) reported author and year? (ref. ID; 5882, 5892)
  2. Clitellio korotneffi Michaelsen, 1905
    See; Rhyacodrilus korontneffi (ref. ID; 7201)
  3. Clitellio multispinus Michaelsen, 1905
    See; Rhyacodrilus multispinus (ref. ID; 7201)

Clitellio arenarius (O.F. Muller, 1776) (ref. ID; 1257, 3692, 6208) reported year? (ref. ID; 1928) reported author and year? (ref. ID; 5882, 5892)

Descriptions

Marine species. (ref. ID; 5882)

A marine littorial species, well known to occur in freshets running across stony shores. There are no hair chaetae, and dorsal and ventral crotchets are alike, with 2-6 (commonly 3) per bundle. The chaetae are short, broad and sigmoid, with the upper tooth reduced or absent. There is a small conical penis. (ref. ID; 6208)