Italian marine Gastrotricha: V. Four new and one redescribed species of Macrodasyida in the Dactylopodolidae and Thaumastodermatidae

Four species new to science are described and figured from the Italian coastline of the Mediterranean Sea and its adjacent waters: the Mediterranean Dactylopodola m&3sotyphIe n, sp. in the family Dactylopodolidae, a neotenous sibling species of the more geographically ubiquitous D. typb1e Remane, 1927, is differentrateci from the latter botti morphologically and biogeographically. Of three species of Tc Iran cbyroderma: T aphenothigmum n. sp., T psilotopum n. sp., and T symphorochetuìn n. sp. in the family Thaumastodermatidae, the first and third have a complete dorsal covering of tetrancres, while the second has an incomplete covering of pentancres. The species Dendrodasys qffinis Wilke, 1954 in the family Dactylopodolidae is redescribed, and figured for the first time, from specimens collected in littoral and shallow sublittoral sedimenta near Naples.