New species of genera leprotintinnus and luminella (ciliophora, spirotrichea, tintinnida) from Kuwait's waters of the Arabian gulf

Tintinnids form an important component of the microzooplankton community in Kuwait's waters. They are particularly abundant in the northern waters of Kuwait as well as in the waters of Kuwait Bay. However, the diversity of the tintinnid species has not been studied. Microzooplankton samples were collected from Kuwait's waters during a two-year zooplankton survey and tintinnid species were identified. In the present paper three new species of tintinnids (Leprotintinnus bubiyanicus, L. elongatus and Luminella kuwaitensis) are described. All these species are of common occurrence in Kuwait's waters and L. kuwaitensis is the most abundant species in this area. The description of the genus Luminella was modified to be inclusive of the unique features of the new species.