Abstract
A median exoskeletal structure, lying between the maxillipeds, is described in the female of Lichomolgides cuanensis (Poecilostomatoida: Lichomolgidae) a copepod symbiont of the compound ascidian Trididemnum tenerum. This structure is compared with the intermaxillipedal process of the primitive copepod order Platycopioida. It is tentatively suggested that despite the evolutionarily advanced status of poecilostomatoids, the structure might represent a plesiomorphic feature of considerable antiquity. Some speculative implications for the phylogeny of associated copepods are briefly discussed.
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References
Ferrari, F. D., 1988. Evolutionary transformations and Dollo’s Law. J. crust. Biol. 8: 618–619.
Gotto, R. V., 1954. Lichomolgides cuunenis N.G., N.SP., an ascidicolous copepod occurring in Trididemnum tenerum ( Verrill ). Parasitology 44: 379–386.
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© 1994 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht
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Gotto, R.V. (1994). Speculations on enigmatic structures in relation to associated copepod phylogeny. In: Ferrari, F.D., Bradley, B.P. (eds) Ecology and Morphology of Copepods. Developments in Hydrobiology, vol 102. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1347-4_21
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-1347-4_21
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