The land planarian Australoplana sanguinea var alba at a horticultural site in New Zealand

Morphometric data and general observations of habitat conditions, feeding behaviour and reproductive biology are presented for the land planarian Australoplana sanguinea var. abba, based upon a population established at a garden centre in Alexandra, South Island, New Zealand. The flatworm species considered in this study appears to be identical to an alien flatworm initially referred to as Geoplana sanguinea (Moseley) var. alba (Dendy) which has successfully colonised areas of the British Isles over the past few decades. The study also highlights the importance of garden centres and nurseries as modified habitats that provide favourable conditions for terrestrial planarians, implying that exotic flatworm species have the potential to spread and exist in pockets world-wide.