Description of Tobriloides loofi n. sp. from natal, South Africa (Nematoda: Onchulidae)

Abstract

Tobriloides loofi n. sp. has a huge cardia, three whorls of cephalic setae and an onchulid structure of the posterior oesophagus, which place it in the rare genus Tobriloides Loof, 1973. It differs mainly from the only other species in this genus, Tobriloides choii Loof, 1973, in its large size, the presence of males in T. loofi and the position of the vulva (midbody in T. loofi and more posterior in T. choii). This is the first description of a member of the genus Tobriloides from South Africa, as well as the first record of a new species within this genus in 16 years. Line drawings, light- and scanning electron micrographs are included in the text, as well as a short discussion of intergenus relationships of Tobriloides.