Phasmarhabditis thesamica n. sp. (Nematoda: Rhabditidae), a new slug nematode from southern slope of Caucasus, Georgia

What is it about?

Phasmarhabditis thesamica n. sp. belonging to the family Rhabditidae, was isolated from the bodies of the invasive slug, Deroceras reticulatum in Georgia. Nematodes of this genus have never been previously recorded in Georgia. Phasmarhabditis thesamica n. sp. was characterized at morphological, morphometrical, and molecular level. Females are 2052 (1863-2241) µm long, lateral fields consisting of three protruding central ridges and four incisions. The vulval opening is in the middle of the body. The tail is conical, long, tapering to a filiform tip, with prominent rod-shaped phasmids. The reproductive system is didelfic-amphidelphic. Males are 1301 (1123-1456) µm long. It has an open peloderal bursa, which is supported by 9 pairs of genital papillae 1 + 1 + 1/2 + 1 + 3, and two phasmids are located close to the tip of the tail. The molecular phylogeny of P. thesamica n. sp. inferred by using ITS, D2-D3 expansion domains of the 28S rRNA gene and the 18S rRNA gene revealed close relationships with P. clausiliiae, with high support.

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Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash

Photo by CHUTTERSNAP on Unsplash