Tag: Parasitic
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126/150: Platyhelminthes – A diverse group of parasites and regenerators!
Animalia: Platyhelminthes Claus, 1887 Platyhelminthes, also known as flatworms, are an extremely successful phylum with around 25,000 known species. Most of the classes are parasites with only the class Turbellaria being mostly non-parasitic. Platyhelminthes are extremely diverse and are well known predators. They can be found parasitizing many different animals, but of particular concern to…
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120/150: Nematodes, one of the most abundant organisms on Earth
Animalia: Nematoda: Chromadorea: Rhabditida (Diesing, 1861) Nematodes, aka roundworms, are extremely successful organisms that have adapted to almost every ecosystem; including polar regions, soils, as well as the inside of other organisms (you and me!). Nematodes represent 90% of all animals on the ocean floor and have been found at depths of over 3 km…
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97/150: An Ant Found Only In Canada
Animalia: Arthropoda: Insecta: Lepidoptera: Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Myrmicinae: Myrmica: Myrmica quebecensis (Francoeur 1981) The ant species Myrmica quebecensis is a species endemic to Canada with an interesting biology. Rather than sustaining their own colonies, these ants are social parasites that rely on the colonies of another ant species to survive.
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89/150: Bizarre parenting brought to you by the Bot Fly
Animalia: Arthropoda: Insecta: Diptera: Oestridae: Cuterebra: Cuterebra fontinella (Clark, 1827) Nothing says parenting like leaving your young in the flesh of mammals to grow up. Members of the genus Cuterebra can be found parasitizing different hosts, but they all share the same process of parasitism. Adult bot flies are non-feeding with vestigial mouthparts that evolution…
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A Mitey Start
Hello everyone, my name is Nathaniel Jones. This is my first blog of the summer. I am currently getting started on my new position here at BIO. I was fortunate enough to land the summer Undergraduate Research Assistantship position to sample the soil for arthropod diversity. So far this week I have just been getting…