Kinabalu giant red leech
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| Kinabalu giant red leech | ||||||||||||||
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 A large example of the Kinabalu giant red leech. Mount Kinabalu, Borneo.
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| Mimobdella buettikoferi Blanchard, 1897 |
The Kinabalu giant red leech is a large (≤30 cm long) bright orange-red coloured leech that is endemic to Mount Kinabalu, Borneo. Very little is known about this animal although it has been identified as Mimobdella buettikoferi Blanchard, 1897.[citation needed]
The Kinabalu leech is not hematophagic and feeds only on worms such as the Kinabalu giant earthworm, Pheretima darnleiensis[1]. It lives in damp earth and leaves in cracks between the rocks and can be found in Kinabalu Park at an altitude of 2,500-3,000 m where the trail runs over a rocky outcrop near to the Mempening and Paka Cave shelters. It is usually seen during or after heavy downpours.[2]
[edit] References
- ^ Blakemore, R.J., C. Csuzdi, M.T. Ito, N. Kaneko, T. Kawaguchi & M. Schilthuizen 2007. Taxonomic status and ecology of Oriental Pheretima darnleiensis (Fletcher, 1886) and other earthworms (Oligochaeta : Megascolecidae) from Mt Kinabalu, Borneo.PDF (16.4 KiB) Zootaxa 1613: 23–44.
- ^ Phillipps, A. & F. Liew 2000. Globetrotter Visitor's Guide – Kinabalu Park. New Holland Publishers (UK) Ltd.
[edit] External links
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