Estudo anatômico de espécies da família Tritoniidae (MOLLUSCA: GASTROPODA) do litoral brasileiro

Abstract

Tritoniidae is a family of sea slugs of the class Gastropoda and phylum Mollusca. They are characterized by branchial plumes, anus in the mid of the body and presence of stomach plates. Current knowledge about the family Tritoniidae is incomplete, the result of a past where species descriptions were based only on the external anatomy, further on there is a strong controversy regarding the characters used by different investigators to separate genera. The aim of this research was the revision of species of the family Tritoniidae from Brazil. The discovery of new species as Marionia limceana and Tritonia khaleesi shows the potential unknown fauna from our coast; Tritonia khaleesi, a tritoniid with unique characters that do not fit in the current taxonomy of the family, fuels the need for a deep study, combining morphologic and molecular, to unveil the lasting doubts of systematic of the family Tritoniidae.