| Dendrocoelum lacteum | |
|---|---|
 | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Platyhelminthes |
| Order: | Tricladida |
| Family: | Dendrocoelidae |
| Genus: | Dendrocoelum |
| Species: | D. lacteum |
| Binomial name | |
| Dendrocoelum lacteum (O. F. Müller, 1774) | |
| Synonyms | |
Eudendrocoelum lacteum(Müller OF, 1773) | |
Dendrocoelum lacteum, the milk-white planarian, is a freshwater planarian found in lakes and running waters in Europe, being the most widespread freshwater planarian in this continent.
Mature specimens of D. lacteum measure between 12 and 25 mm in length and up to 6 mm in width. The body is completely white, although the presence of food in the intestine may give it a temporary different color. The head is narrower than the rest of the body and has a blunt end. There are two short blunt projections laterally to the anterior end that form tentacles. There is also a ventral subterminal sucker that is more evident during locomotion. The eyes are seen as two dorsal black dots wide apart right in front of the constriction that separates the head from the body. The body margins often have a frilled appearance. [1]
Dendrocoelum lacteum is widely distributed across Europe in all sorts of freshwater bodies. It is usually found under submerged rocks or dead leaves on the margin of the water bodies. [1] [2]
The diet of D. lacteum consists of smaller invertebrates found in the same habitat. The main component of its diet seems to be freshwater isopods of the genus Asellus and their presence in a water body appear to be essential for the occurrence of the planarian. [3] Other ingested invertebrates include amphipods of the genus Gammarus and, less frequently, freshwater oligochaetes. Differently from freshwater planarians of the families Planariidae and Dugesiidae, D. lacteum does not feed on freshwater snails, which allows it to coexist with other planarian species without much food competition. [4]
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Planaria is a genus of planarians in the family Planariidae.
Anostraca is one of the four orders of crustaceans in the class Branchiopoda; its members are referred to as fairy shrimp. They live in vernal pools and hypersaline lakes across the world, and they have even been found in deserts, ice-covered mountain lakes, and Antarctic ice. They are usually 6–25 mm (0.24–0.98 in) long. Most species have 20 body segments, bearing 11 pairs of leaf-like phyllopodia, and the body lacks a carapace. They swim "upside-down" and feed by filtering organic particles from the water or by scraping algae from surfaces, with the exception of Branchinecta gigas, or "giant fairy shrimp", which is itself a predator of other species of anostracans. They are an important food for many birds and fish, and some are cultured and harvested for use as fish food. There are 300 species spread across 8 families.
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The Atlantic stingray is a species of stingray in the family Dasyatidae, common along the Atlantic coast of North America from Chesapeake Bay to Mexico, including brackish and freshwater habitats. It may be distinguished from other stingrays in the area by its relatively elongated snout. This species is of little commercial importance, other than for sale in the aquarium industry.
The banded killifish is a North American species of temperate freshwater killifish belonging to the genus Fundulus of the family Fundulidae. Its natural geographic range extends from Newfoundland to South Carolina, and west to Minnesota, including the Great Lakes drainages. This species is the only freshwater killifish found in the northeastern United States. While it is primarily a freshwater species, it can occasionally be found in brackish water.
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Bipalium is a genus of large predatory land planarians. They are often loosely called "hammerhead worms" or "broadhead planarians" because of the distinctive shape of their head region. Land planarians are unique in that they possess a "creeping sole", a highly ciliated region on the ventral epidermis that helps them to creep over the substrate. Native to Asia, several species are invasive to the United States, Canada, and Europe. Some studies have begun the investigation of the evolutionary ecology of these invasive planarians.
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Daphnia lumholtzi is a species of small, invasive water fleas that originates in the tropical and subtropical lakes of Africa, Asia, and Australia. As an invasive species, Daphnia lumholtzi disrupts aquatic habitats by spreading throughout the warmer waters of lakes and reservoirs.
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