THE IMPORTANCE OF THE FIXATION OF COLOR, PATTERN AND FORM IN TROPICAL PSEUDOCEROTIDAE (PLATYHELMINTHES, POLYCLADIDA)

At last a fixation method that ensures tropical pseudocerotid polyclads are fixed flat, preserved for histological preparation and which also retains their colour pattern has been developed. FCA-PGPP (Formaldehyde Calcium Acetate - Propylene Glycol, Propylene Phenoxetol) fixative is frozen and worms are coaxed onto filter paper which is then laid on the frozen fixative. As a consequence, over 230 species have been documented from the southern Great Barrier Reef and eastern Papua New Guinea (Newman and Cannon, 1994; in press). It was determined that species diagnoses need to be based on colour pattern, general morphology of living animals and serial reconstructions of the male anatomy.