Notes on the Natural History of the Terrestrial Leech, 



Haemopis septagon Sawyer and Shelley 



(Gnathobdella: Hirudinidae) 



Rowland M. Shelley and Alvin L. Braswell 



North Carolina State Museum of Natural History, 



P.O. Box 27647, Raleigh, North Carolina 27611 



and 



David L. Stephan 



Department of Entomology, North Carolina State University, 



Raleigh, North Carolina 27607 



ABSTRACT. — The terrestrial leech, Haemopis septagon Sawyer and 

 Shelley, inhabits moist floodplains near water sources in North Carolina 

 and appears to be widespread in the Coastal Plain and eastern Pied- 

 mont of the state. Large earthworms seem to be the primary food source. 

 Some individuals display light yellowish stripes along the lateral margin, 

 and one reddish juvenile has been collected, possibly reflecting a 

 recessive genotype for color. Immature specimens have been encoun- 

 tered in April and are characterized by a flattened female gonopore and 

 reduced body size. Anatomical, ecological, and geographical similarities 

 with H. terrestns (Forbes) suggest a close phylogenetic relationship for 

 the two land leeches of North America. 



The terrestrial leech, Haemopis septagon Sawyer and Shelley, inhabits the 

 Coastal Plain and eastern Piedmont Plateau provinces of the Carolinas 

 and Virginia (Sawyer and Shelley 1976). The only other land leech in the 

 United States, Haemopis terrestns (Forbes), occurs in the Mississippi and 

 Ohio River valleys from the southern Great Lakes south to Louisiana and 

 eastward along the Gulf Coast to Gainesville, Florida (Sawyer 1972, 

 Sawyer and Shelley 1976). The latter species occurs in damp soil under 

 rocks and logs and feeds on large earthworms (Forbes 1890, Sawyer 

 1972). Little is known about its life history. Sawyer and Shelley (1976) 

 described the anatomy of H. septagon, but because the number of 

 specimens was limited, and most were preserved without habitat data, no 

 ecological or reproductive information was provided. 



In the past few years we have collected a number of specimens of H. 

 septagon in North Carolina, especially from the upper Neuse River Basin 

 of Wake County, and present the following observations on its habitat, 

 life history, and color variation to supplement the popularized account by 

 Shelley (1977). Six individuals were immature, as revealed by overall size 

 and the condition of the female gonopore. 



Brimleyana No. 1: 129-133. March 1979. 129 



