Family Heterorhabditidae

                                 Revised 01/15/26

Classification:

Phylum Nematoda

  Class Chromadorea

    Subclass Chromadoria

Rhabditida

               Rhabditina

Rhabditoidea

Rhabditomorpha

     Heterorhabditidae Poinar, 1975

Obligate insect parasites. Infective juveniles carry symbiotic bacteria in the bacterial chamber of the intestine.

Both hermaphrodites and amphimictic females and males occur (Nguyen and Smart, 1996).   

Nematodes feed on the bacteria proliferating in the insect body.. They complete one to three generations within the cadaver. In the Heterorhabditidae, the IJs develop into self-fertile hermaphrodites which produce the next generation. The secomd and subsequent genertaions in the cadaver are amphimictic and offspring are produced by cross fertilization involving males and females.        


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Body size range for the species of this Family in the database - Click:

References

Hunt, D.J. and Nguyen, K.B. 2016. Advances in Entonmopathogenic Nematode Taxonomy and Phylogeny. Nematology Monographs and Perspecives 12 Brill, Leiden.

Nguyen, K.B. and Smart, G.C. 1996. Identification of entomopathogenic nematodes in the Steinernematidae and Heterorhabditidae. J. Nemtology 28:286-300.

Poinar, G.O. Jr. 1975. Description and biology of a new insect parasitic Rhabditoid, Heterorhabditis bacteriophora N. Gen., N. Sp.(Rhabditida; Heterorhabditidae N. Fam.).Nematologica 21:463-470.

Stock, S.P and Reid, A.P. 2004. Biosystematics of entomopathogenic nematodes (Steinernematidae, Heterorhabditidae): current status and future directions.  Nematology Monographs and Persdectives 2:435-446.

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