Aquatic Oligochaete Biology VIII, 2001
Proceedings of the 8th International Symposium on Aquati Oligochaeta, held in Bilbao, Spain, 18–22 July 2000
Developments in Hydrobiology Series, Vol. 158

This book contains 26 contributions dealing with the biology of aquatic oligochaetes and covers a wide range of topics including taxonomy, morphology, ultrastructure, embryology, reproduction, feeding biology, ecotoxicity, community studies, and species distribution. Descriptions of new taxa in tropical areas, including Amazonian forest soils, as well as overviews on the biodiversity of aquatic oligochaetes in Australia and European groundwaters, are presented. New morphological characteristics in both marine and freshwater species are described and interpreted. Laboratory studies contribute to the knowledge of oligochaete feeding biology and reproduction. The use of aquatic oligochaetes in ecological risk assessment is analysed in detail, and standardised experimental designs for studies on bioaccumulation and pollutant transfer by food are included. Finally, a number of papers present the effects of oliogochaetes on the performance of an activated sludge plant, and multivariate approaches to the spatial and/or temporal distribution and composition of oligochaete communities in many different areas of the world, from the scale of a river to the scale of the microhabitat. The broad scope of this volume is a reflection of recent rends, not only in oligochaete research, but also in general applied biological studies.

Preface. List of participants. Some memories of Dr Gilberto Righi (1937-1999); M.L. Christoffersen. In memoriam, Professor Perry C. Holt, Ph.D. (1910-2000); S.R. Gelder. Part One: Taxonomy. Descriptions of three Pristina species (Naididae, Clitellata) from Amazonian forest soils, including P. marcusi sp. nov.; R. Collado, R.M. Schmelz. A new lumbriculid genus and species from North America (Clitellata, Lumbriculidae); S.V. Fend, D.L. Gustafson. Taxonomical survey of some stygobiont oligochaetes from the eastern part of France, including description of a new species; J. Juget, M. des Châteliers. A preliminary study of oligochaetes in Poyang Lake, the largest freshwater lake of China, and its vicinity, with description of a new species of Limnodrilus; H. Wang, Y. Liang. New alluroids (Annelida, Clitellata) from Guyana; P. Omodeo, K.A. Coates. Part Two: Diversity and Distribution. Notes on the diversity and distribution of Australian Naididae and Phreodrilidae (Oligochaeta: Annelida); A. Pinder. Oligochaetes in southern European groundwater: new records and an overview; N. Giani, et al. Oligochaete communities in the hyporheic zone of a glacial river, the Roseg River, Switzerland; M. Lafont, F. Malard. Oligochaetes in Lake Towada, Japan, an oligotrophic caldera; A. Ohtaka. Distribution and dispersal capacity of the Ponto-Caspian tubificid oligochaete Pothamothrix. moldaviensis Vejdovsky et Mrázek, 1903 in the Baltic Sea Region; G. Milbrink, T. Timm. Part Three: Morphology and Embriology. Temporal pattern of the double sperm line production in Tubifex tubifex (Annelida, Oligochaeta); S. Boi, M. Ferraguti. External structures used during attachment and sperm transfer in tubificids(Annelida, Oligochaeta); S. Cuadrado, E. Martínez-Ansemil. Mysterious `crystals': found on the epidermal peritoneum of marine tubificid (Clitellata: Annelida) species; K.A. Coates, et al. Pattern formation in embryos of the oligochaete annelid Tubifex: cellular basis for segmentation and specification of segmental identity; T. Shimizu, et al. Part Four: Feeding Biology and Reproduction. Selective feeding by the aquatic oligochaete Tubifex tubifex (Tubificidae, Clitellata); P. Rodriguez, et al. Cocoon deposition of Rhyacodrilus hiemalis Ohtaka (Tubificidae) in Lake Biwa, Japan; T. Narita. Part Five: Ecotoxicology and Bioaccumulation. Utility and relevance of aquatic oligochaetes in Ecological Risk Assessment; P. Chapman. Tubifex tubifex as a link in food chain transfer of hexachlorobenzene from contaminated sediment to fish; P. Egeler, et al. Bioaccumulation of lindane and hexachlorobenzene by the oligochaetes Enchytraeus Luxuriosus and Enchytraeus albidus (Enchytraeidae, Oligochaeta, Annelida); E. Bruns, et al. Part Six: Ecology. Spatial and temporal variations of oligochaetes of the Ivinhema River and Patos Lake on the Upper Paraná River Basin, Brazil; M.C. Montanholi-Martins, A.M. Takeda. The distribution and ecology of littoral Oligochaeta and Aphanoneura (Annelida) of the Natural and Historical Reserve of Isla Martín García, Río de la Plata River, Argentina; L.C. Armendáriz, I.I. César. Effects of Nais elinguis on the performance of an activated sludge plant; C.H. Ratsak. Half a century of oligochaete research in Estonian running waters; T. Timm, et al. Oligochaeta of the Morava and Odra Riv