Journal Article
Ecology and Phylogenetic Position of the Spoon Worm, Ikeda pirotansis (Menon and DattaGupta, 1962), (Annelida: Echiura) in Kuwait, Northwestern Arabian Gulf
Manickam Nithyanandan; Masaatsu Tanaka; Faiza Al‐Yamani; Manal Al‐Kandari; Prakash Sanjeevi; Chandran Rethinaraj; Raja Dinesh Kumar; Ratheesh Kesavan
Marine Ecology · Vol. 46, Issue 1 · 2025
Abstract
Ikeda pirotansis (Menon and DattaGupta 1962), previously known only from intertidal habitats, is now reported for the first time from subtidal habitats in Kuwait, northwestern Arabian Gulf. This finding eliminates its ecological separation from its congener Ikeda taenioides , which is endemic to Japan. The comparison of proboscis morphology (shape, length and colour pattern) between intertidal and subtidal I. pirotansis shows no significant differences. Furthermore, mtDNA extracted from proboscis samples and analysed for the COX1 gene revealed no genetic distance between intertidal and subtidal samples, confirming that I. pirotansis also colonises subtidal habitats. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that the I. pirotansis from Kuwait and India clustered together, forming a monophyletic clade, and warrants more extensive regional sampling to study the detailed taxonomic and evolutionary history of the order Echiuroidea.