Stylochid 5  
Photos 1, 3: Cory Pittman, Hekili Point, Maui, intertidal. Photo 2: Maria Schaefer, Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i.

ID from Newman & Cannon CD, where illustrated by a single photo by Gustav Paulay taken in Micronesia. "Body round, thick, fleshy. Background colour light cream with distinct brown spots, smaller towards the margin. Head tentacles not visible." Although head tentacles are not visible in the CD photograph, the Hawai'i photos show possible minute, black, closely spaced head tentacles (photo 3). Newman & Cannon note that tentacles of stylochids "may be difficult to distinguish...."

The worm was common at Hekili Point, Maui, in 2007. Newman & Cannon note that worms of the family Stylochidae are often locally common.

Stylochid 5 greatly resembles photos posted online of Ilyella gigas, another stylochid flatworm, and might well be identical to that species. Although I. gigas is not included on the Newman & Cannon CD, good information on it is available in this recently-published paper, which states that I. gigas lacks head tentacles. Because it is not clear to us whether the worms posted here have head tentacles or not, we hesitate at this time to assign Stylochid 5 to I. gigas..

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