Kaburakia excelsa

Kaburakia excelsa
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Platyhelminthes
Class:	Rhabditophora
Order:	Polycladida
Family:	Callioplanidae
Genus:	Kaburakia
Species:	K. excelsa
Binomial name
	Kaburakia excelsa; Bock, 1925
Synonyms
	Cryptophallus magnus Freeman, 1933

Last updated March 11, 2021

Kaburakia excelsa, the giant flatworm or giant leaf worm,^[2] is a species of flatworm found on the lower shore and shallow water in the eastern Pacific Ocean. It occurs on the lower shore and shallow sub-littoral zone.

Description

Kaburakia excelsa can grow to a length of at least 9 cm (3.5 in). It is flat and nearly as broad as it is long. It has a pair of fleshy nuchal tentacles on the anterior end of the body near where the brain is located. These tentacles can be retracted. On them and near their base are a number of simple eyespots, and there are more of these above the brain and a row of them round the margin of the body. The marginal eyespots are difficult to see in living specimens but the gut can be discerned through the skin and has the branching form typical of this order of flatworms. The upper surface is tan with a few darker brown streaks and spots while the underside is paler and largely unspotted. This species has no suckers on the underside.^[2] It can be distinguished from other flatworms in the area by its much larger size, and is in fact one of the largest flatworms in the world.^[2]

Distribution and habitat

This flatworm is native to the western seaboard of North America, its range extending from Sitka in Alaska to Newport Harbor in California. It is found on the lower shore and in the shallow sub-littoral zone, under rocks, on pilings, on the fouled hulls of boats and among mussels and rock-boring bivalves.^[2]

Ecology

The diet of this flatworm is not known, but it will eat mussels in the laboratory. It moves away from light, and as it moves, wrinkles form along the margins.^[2] In Washington State, breeding takes place in March, and in the laboratory, this flatworm has bred between June and August and in December. The eggs are golden yellow and enclosed in capsules. About 150 are laid, and are packed closely in one or two layers, forming an egg plate that is stuck to a rock surface. They hatch in five or more weeks at 12 °C (54 °F) and the development of the offspring is direct. Newly hatched young are pale brown with five to seven eyespots. By a week later, they have darkened in colour, the front end becoming browner and the hind end becoming reddish.^[3]

Related Research Articles

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Monogeneans are a group of ectoparasitic flatworms commonly found on the skin, gills, or fins of fish. They have a direct lifecycle and do not require an intermediate host. Adults are hermaphrodites, meaning they have both male and female reproductive structures.

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Anthopleura xanthogrammica, or the giant green anemone, is a species of intertidal sea anemone of the family Actiniidae.

Diodora aspera, also known as the rough keyhole limpet, is a species of sea snail, a marine gastropod mollusk in the family Fissurellidae, the keyhole limpets. Although similar in appearance to a common limpet, it has a hole near the apex of its shell, and is only distantly related. It often has a scaled polychaete worm Arctonoe vittata living inside its shell as a commensal. In the event that it is attacked by a starfish, it extends flaps of mantle to defend itself, and the worm also helps drive the predator away.

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Metridium senile, or frilled anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Metridiidae. As a member of the genus Metridium, it is a type of plumose anemone and is found in the seas off north-western Europe and both the east and west coasts of North America.

Lychnorhiza lucerna is a species of jellyfish in the order Rhizostomeae. It is found off the Atlantic coasts of South America.

Maritigrella crozierae, the tiger flatworm, is a species of marine polyclad flatworm in the family Euryleptidae. It is found on the eastern coasts of North America and the Caribbean Sea where it feeds on colonial sea squirts.

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Rossia pacifica, also known as the stubby squid, is a species of bobtail squid native to the northern Pacific Ocean. It usually occurs in winter on sandy slopes away from strong currents in moderately shallow water. In summer it moves to deeper water where it breeds. The female cements the egg capsules under a stone or in some other concealed location, and both male and female die soon after breeding.

Tubulanus polymorphus is a species of ribbon worm in the phylum Nemertea. It is found in the northern Atlantic Ocean and the northern Pacific Ocean. It occurs on the lower shore down to about 50 m (160 ft), on sand or gravel, under stones and among seaweed.

Epiactis ritteri, the sandy anemone or Ritter's brooding anemone, is a species of sea anemone in the family Actiniidae. It is found in the Pacific Ocean on the western coast of North America in the shallow sub-littoral zone.

Prostheceraeus vittatus, the candy striped flatworm, is a species of marine polyclad flatworm in the family Euryleptidae. It is found in Western Europe, including on the western coasts of the British Isles.

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References

1 2 Tyler, Seth (2010). "Kaburakia excelsa Bock, 1925". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 19 October 2017.
1 2 3 4 5 Cowles, Dave (2004). "Kaburakia excelsa Bock, 1925". Invertebrates of the Salish Sea. Walla Walla University. Retrieved 19 October 2017.
↑ Strathmann, Megumi F. (2017). Reproduction and Development of Marine Invertebrates of the Northern Pacific Coast. University of Washington Press. pp. 119–122. ISBN 978-0-295-74324-0.

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[WoRMS-1] 1 2 Tyler, Seth (2010). "Kaburakia excelsa Bock, 1925". WoRMS. World Register of Marine Species . Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[Cowles-2] 1 2 3 4 5 Cowles, Dave (2004). "Kaburakia excelsa Bock, 1925". Invertebrates of the Salish Sea. Walla Walla University. Retrieved 19 October 2017.

[Strathmann-3] Strathmann, Megumi F. (2017). Reproduction and Development of Marine Invertebrates of the Northern Pacific Coast. University of Washington Press. pp. 119–122. ISBN 978-0-295-74324-0.

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