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Nematomorpha
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{{Taxobox | color = pink
| name = Nematomorpha
| image = Paragordius tricuspidatus.jpeg
| image_width = 250px
| caption = ''
Paragordius tricuspidatus''
| regnum =
Animalia
| phylum = '''Nematomorpha'''
| phylum_authority =
Vejdovsky, 1886
| subdivision_ranks =
Class (biology) Classes
| subdivision =
NectonematoidaGordioidea
}}
'''Nematomorpha''' (sometimes called '''Gordiacea''', and commonly known as '''horsehair worms''') are a
phylum of
parasitic animals which are
morphology morphologically and
ecology ecologically similar to
nematode worms, hence the name. They are, on average, 1
metre long, and 1 to 3
millimetres in diameter. Horsehair worms can be discovered in damp areas such as watering troughs, streams, puddles, and cisterns. The adult worms are free living , but the
larvae are
parasite parasitic on
beetles,
cockroaches,
grasshoppers and
crustaceans. About 320 species have been described.
Nematomorphs possess an external
cuticle without
cilia. Internally, they have only longitudinal muscle and a non-functional gut, with no
excretory system excretory,
respiratory system respiratory or
circulatory systems. Reproductively, they are
dioecious, with the internal fertilisation of eggs that are then laid gelatinous strings.
Image:Spinochordodes in Meconema.jpg thumb|250px|left|''[[Spinochordodes tellinii'' and its grasshopper host]]
In ''
Spinochordodes tellinii'', which has grasshoppers as its
vector (biology) vector, the infection acts on the grasshopper's brain and causes it to seek water and drown itself, thus returning the nematomorph to water.
Relationships within the phylum are still somewhat unclear, but two classes are recognised:
*Class
Nectonematoida: Marine, planktonic, with a double row of natotory
setae along each side of the body; with dorsal and ventral longitudinal epidermal cords,
blastocoelom spacious and fluid filled;
gonads single; larvae parasitise
Decapoda decapod crustaceans
*Class
Gordioidea: Freshwater and semiterrestrial; lack lateral rows of setae; with a single, ventral epidermal cord; blastocoelom filled with
mesenchyme in young animals but becomes spacious in older individuals; larvae parasitise grasshoppers and
crickets
Category:Animals
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ko:ìœ ì„ í˜•ë?™ë¬¼
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nl:Nematomorpha
ja:�リガ�ムシ
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ru:ВолоÑ?атики
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zh:线形虫动物门
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