Xenoturbella is a genus of bilaterian animals; it is a marine worm. Its taxonomic position has been considered enigmatic since its discovery in 1949, but a 2003 DNA study has positioned it as a primitive deuterostome outside the established phyla. Earlier it was suspected to be closely related to molluscs, but it turned out that the DNA test was contaminated with DNA from its food, which happened to be molluscs.

Xenoturbella has a very simple body plan: it has no brain, no gut, no gonads, or any other defined organs; it has cilia and a diffuse nervous system. The animal is up to 4 cm long, and has been found only in the Baltic Sea. Since it lacks gonads, it is a mystery how they reproduce.

The genus Xenoturbella contains two species:

• Xenoturbella bocki
• Xenoturbella westbladi

References

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Animals

Mlžojedi | Xenoturbellida | Xenoturbella