Taxonomic and ecological studies of species ofNotholca(Rotatoria) found in sea- and brackish water, with description of a new species

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Abstract
Notholca acuminata, N. bipalium, N. caudata, N. labis, N. liepetterseni sp. nov., N. marina, N. psammarina, N. salina, N. squamula, and N. striata are found in sea- or brackish-water or both. Of these N. acuminata, N. caudata, N. labis, and N. squamula are freshwater species. Except for N. squamula all species have been studied in at least one of the following areas: the Espegrend area near Bergen, western Norway, the Tvärminne area on the south Finnish coast, and the outmost part of the Hudson River, eastern USA. The samples were taken from many habitats among benthos and periphyton, but only at Espegrend during the whole year. A temporal variation in body length of the most common marine species, N. bipalium, N. liepetterseni, N. marina, and N. striata was found at Espegrend. The body length decreased during spring and early summer, and sometimes this sequence was repeated during late summer. During autumn, however, the size change was reversed; the body length increased. The morphological variability was studied in detail, and biometrical analyses were made. On this basis N. marina has been separated from N. acuminata, N. salina from N, squamula, and N. bipalium and N. liepetterseni from N. striata as species of their own. Because of the great morphological variation within most of the species, which seems especially to be of a local nature, absolute discriminating features cannot be given between the different species within the N. acuminata group (N. acuminata, N. caudata, N. labis, and N. marina) and the N. striata group (N. bipalium, N. liepetterseni, and N. striata).