Rhodope (gastropod)
| Rhodope | |
|---|---|
| A specimen of Rhodope veranii | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Mollusca |
| Class: | Gastropoda |
| Infraclass: | Mesoneura |
| Superfamily: | Rhodopoidea |
| Family: | Rhodopidae |
| Genus: | Koelliker, 1847 |
| Type species | |
| Rhodope veranii Koelliker, 1847 (monotypy) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
| |
Rhodope is a genus of small meiofaunal sea slugs, shell-less vermiform gastropod mollusks in the family Rhodopidae. Their worm-like body structure differs considerably from typical gastropods, to the point of being mistaken for flatworms in the past.[2]
Feeding habits
Rhodopids are the only known predators of placozoans, which make up the primary component of their diet.[3] Some species of Rhodope, such as Rhodope placozophagus, can subsist entirely on a diet of placozoans, and are apparently immune to their toxins.[4]
Species
Species in the genus Rhodope include:[1]
- Rhodope crucispiculata Salvini-Plawen, 1991
- Rhodope marcusi Salvini-Plawen, 1991
- Rhodope placozophagus Cuervo-González, 2017
- Rhodope roskoi Haszprunar & Hess, 2005
- Rhodope rousei Brenzinger, N. G. Wilson & Schrödl, 2011
- Rhodope salviniplaweni Fernández-Simón & Moles, 2025
- Rhodope transtrosa Salvini-Plawen, 1991
- Rhodope veranii Koelliker, 1847
References
- ^ a b "MolluscaBase - Rhodope Koelliker, 1847". www.molluscabase.org. Retrieved 22 June 2025.
- ^ Brenzinger, Bastian; Haszprunar, Gerhard; Schrödl, Michael (2013). "At the limits of a successful body plan - 3D microanatomy, histology and evolution of Helminthope (Mollusca: Heterobranchia: Rhodopemorpha), the most worm-like gastropod". Frontiers in Zoology. 10 (1): 37. doi:10.1186/1742-9994-10-37. ISSN 1742-9994. PMC 3704743. PMID 23809165.
- ^ Eitel, Michael; Osigus, Hans‐Jürgen; Brenzinger, Bastian; Wörheide, Gert (2024). "Beauty in the beast – Placozoan biodiversity explored through molluscan predator genomics". Ecology and Evolution. 14 (4). doi:10.1002/ece3.11220. ISSN 2045-7758. PMC 11007570.
- ^ Cuervo-González, Rodrigo (2017). "Rhodope placozophagus (Heterobranchia) a new species of turbellarian-like Gastropoda that preys on placozoans". Zoologischer Anzeiger. 270: 43–48. doi:10.1016/j.jcz.2017.09.005. ISSN 0044-5231.