Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita

Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita
Third stage dauer larva

P. hermaphrodita

Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Nematoda
Class: Chromadorea
Order: Rhabditida
Family: Rhabditidae
Genus: Phasmarhabditis
Species:
P. hermaphrodita
Binomial name
Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita
(A. Schneider, 1859)

Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita is a facultative parasitic nematode that can kill slugs and snails.[1] It belongs to the family Rhabditidae,[1] the same family as Caenorhabditis elegans.

P. hermaphrodita is a bacterial-feeding nematode and is a lethal parasite of several terrestrial gastropod families such as Arionidae, Milacidae and Limacidae.[1][2] It is also able to reproduce on rotting matter or penetrate and remain in resistant slug and snail species where it awaits for their death and will then reproduce on the cadaver (necromeny). P. hermaphrodita was first isolated and documented by A. Schneider in 1859 [1][2] and was intensively studied in the 1990s by researchers at Long Ashton Research centre who were focused on finding a new biocontrol agent for slugs. P. hermaphrodita was isolated here and developed as a biological control agent (Nemaslug®)[3][2][4] for minimising agriculture damage from slugs and snails in 1994.

  1. ^ a b c d Genena, M. A., Mostafa, F. A., Fouly, A. H., & Yousef, A. A. (2011). First record for the slug parasitic nematode, Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita (Schneider) in Egypt. Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection, 44(4), 340-345.
  2. ^ a b c Wilson, M. J.; Glen, D. M.; George, S. K. (January 1993). "The rhabditid nematode Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita as a potential biological control agent for slugs". Biocontrol Science and Technology. 3 (4): 503–511. doi:10.1080/09583159309355306.
  3. ^ "Nemaslug®". BASF. 16 January 2017. Archived from the original on 16 January 2017. Retrieved 8 May 2022.
  4. ^ Rae, R., Verdun, C., Grewal, P. S., Robertson, J. F., & Wilson, M. J. (2007). Biological control of terrestrial molluscs using Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita—progress and prospects. Pest Management Science, 63(12), 1153-1164.