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Two species of the genus Deficephalobus, D. mirabilis sp. n. and D. desenderi, are described and illustrated on the basis of material collected in Costa Rica. The new species is characterised by 0.67-1.2 mm long body; bluntly rounded labial region; amphidial aperture one-third of labial region diam. wide; cheilostom barrel-shaped with sclerotised, bar-shaped, cheilorhabdia; gymnostom barrel-shaped with moderately sclerotised lining of gymnostom; stegostom funnel-shaped anteriorly, narrow tubular posteriorly and subdivided into four sets of rhabdia; basal bulb elongate ovoid with weakly developed valvular apparatus; excretory pore opening anterior to nerve ring; ovary tip almost reaching the level of rectum, large spermatheca, postvulval uterine sac shorter than vulval body diameter; female tail elongate conoid and straight, with filiform tail terminus; male tail short conoid with small, ragged, terminal mucro. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three species of Bunonematoidea, Pterygorhabditis panoplus, Rhodolaimus arboreus sp. n. and Rhodolaimus dimorphus are described and illustrated on the basis of material collected in Costa Rica. SEM studies and details of the labial region structure in P. panoplus and R. arboreus sp. n. are given. Rhodolaimus arboreus sp. n. is characterised by the 0.2-0.25 mm long body, left body side with five parallel cuticular ridges, right body side with two parallel rows of tubercles, the anteriormost pair of which are almost fused, 28-33.5 μm long spicules, cylindrical gubernaculum, bursa developed on left body side and seven pairs of caudal papillae. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The genus Anonchus is revised. The genera Assia and Haconnus are considered to be synonymous with Anonchus on the basis of the morphological analysis. Additional descriptions of six species, viz. A. maculatus , A. mirabilis , A. millelacunatus , A. palaeotropicus , A. coomansi and A. pulcher are provided on the basis of type material or recently collected populations. The lectotype of A. monohystera is designated and described and the synonymy of this species with A. maculatus is confirmed. Two new species are described; A. winiszewskae sp. n. from Paraguay and A. venezolanus sp. n. from Venezuela. Several aspects of the morphology are described and the variability and diagnostic significance of the main morphological characters discussed. A study of intrageneric and suprageneric taxonomy of the genus Anonchus is presented. The subfamily Aphanolaiminae is reinstated for the genera Aphanolaimus, Aphanonchus and Paraphanolaimus and raised to family rank. The family Aphanolaimidae includes two subfamilies: Aphanolaiminae and Anonchinae. An emended diagnosis and a revised classification of Anonchus are proposed and a key to the species of the genus is provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seven species of Araeolaimida were found in soil, moss and freshwater habitats of tropical forests in Costa Rica. Three are described as new. Anonchus pulcher n. sp. is characterised by slender body, lip region demarcated by a depression, presence of ca 45- 60 sublateral glands on each side of the body and monoprodelphic female genital apparatus. Paraplectonema americanum n. sp. lacks somatic setae, the stoma is 3.0-3.4 lip region diameter long, the female rectum measures 26 μm, the male tail 137-153 μm, presence of ten to 11 male supplements, spicula 28-30 μm long, gubernaculum of complicated shape with a caudal apophysis. Chronogaster costaricae n. sp. is characterised by absence of longitudinal incisures, rows of spines, crystalloids and vacuolated glandular bodies, terminus with open mucro with one or two basal spines. The species redescribed, either briefly for well known, or more extensively for less well known, species are: Plectus patagonicus de Man, 1904; P.indicus Khera, 1972; Chronogaster serrulata Loof, 1973 and C. cameroonensis Heyns & Coomans, 1984. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]