Description of Longidorus cholevae sp. n. (Nematoda, Dorylaimida) from a riparian habitat in the Rila Mountains, Bulgaria

A description is provided of Longidorus cholevae sp. n., a bisexual species associated with wild cherry (Prunus avium L.) from the Rila Mountains, Bulgaria. The position of L. cholevae sp. n. among other species of the genus was elucidated by using morphological and molecular data. Phylogenetic analyses were performed of D2-D3 expansion domains of the 28S rRNA and the partial ITS1 containing regions by Neighbor-Joining, Maximum Likelihood and Bayesian Inference methods. The species is characterised by a female body length of 6.1-8.1 mm; long odontostyle (106-129 μm); lip region wide (21.5-24 μm) rounded and continuous with the body profile; amphidial pouches short and wide, funnel-shaped; a posteriorly situated guide ring (30-37 μm); normal arrangement of pharyngeal glands, and short bluntly rounded to hemispherical tail. Four juvenile stages indentified, first stage with elongate conoid tail. Males with 2-4 adanal pairs and a row of 11-13 single ventromedian supplements, spicules 96-120 μm long. Based both on morphological and molecular data the new species appearred to be the most similar witha group of species distributed in Europe sharing common charcters such as amphidial fovea, lip region and tail shapes, and having similar odontostyle and body length: L. poessneckensis, L. caespiticola, L. macrososma, L. helveticus, L. carniolensis and L. pius. An updated list of Longidorus species and a partial polytomous keys to the Longidorus species with long odontostyle (code A45) and short tail (code H1) are provided.