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Steinernema keralense n. sp., a new entomopathogenic nematode (Nematoda: Steinernematidae) from India

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  17 February 2025

K.M. Anes Open the ORCID record for K.M. Anes [Opens in a new window] ,
J. Patil Open the ORCID record for J. Patil [Opens in a new window] ,
M. Babu ,
N. Aarthi Open the ORCID record for N. Aarthi [Opens in a new window] ,
B.S. Gotyal ,
A. Josephrajkumar Open the ORCID record for A. Josephrajkumar [Opens in a new window] ,
P.H. Mhatre Open the ORCID record for P.H. Mhatre [Opens in a new window] ,
J.V. Sajan Open the ORCID record for J.V. Sajan [Opens in a new window] ,
M.T. Gowda Open the ORCID record for M.T. Gowda [Opens in a new window]  and
V. Půža Open the ORCID record for V. Půža [Opens in a new window]
K.M. Anes
Affiliation:
ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Regional Station, Kayamkulam–690533 Kerala, India
J. Patil*
Affiliation:
ICAR–National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, Bengaluru–560024, Karnataka, India
M. Babu
Affiliation:
ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Regional Station, Kayamkulam–690533 Kerala, India
N. Aarthi
Affiliation:
ICAR–National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, Bengaluru–560024, Karnataka, India
B.S. Gotyal
Affiliation:
ICAR–National Bureau of Agricultural Insect Resources, Bengaluru–560024, Karnataka, India
A. Josephrajkumar
Affiliation:
ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Regional Station, Kayamkulam–690533 Kerala, India
P.H. Mhatre
Affiliation:
ICAR–Central Potato Research Institute, Regional Station, Udhagamandalam, Nilgiris–643004, Tamil Nadu, India
J.V. Sajan
Affiliation:
ICAR-Central Plantation Crops Research Institute, Regional Station, Kayamkulam–690533 Kerala, India
M.T. Gowda
Affiliation:
ICAR–Indian Institute of Vegetable Research, Varanasi–221305, Uttar Pradesh, India
V. Půža
Affiliation:
Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Institute of Entomology, Branišovská 1160/31, 370 05 České Budějovice, Czech Republic Faculty of Agriculture and Technology, University of South Bohemia, Studentská 1668, České Budějovice 37005, Czech Republic
*
Corresponding author: J. Patil; Email: patiljaggi@gmail.com
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Abstract

In this study, morphological and molecular features were used to identify a new Steinernema sp. from Kerala, India. Morphological and molecular features provide evidence for placing the new species into the longicaudum clade. The new species is characterized by the following morphological features: infective juveniles with a body length of 1067 μm (914–1268 μm); a distance from the anterior end to excretory pore of 82 μm (73–92 μm); a distance from anterior end to nerve ring of 105 μm (91–118 μm). The distinguishing feature of the infective juveniles of S. keralense n. sp. is the presence of seven ridges in the mid-body region, while all other species classified within the logicaudum clade to date are characterized by eight ridges. The first-generation males are characterised by 25 genital papillae, very short spicules, with a length of 68 μm (60–72 μm), and the SW% ratio is 136 (114–169). The new species is further characterized by sequences of the internal transcribed spacer and partial 28S regions of the ribosomal DNA. Phylogenetic analyses show that S. keralense n. sp. is closely related to species within the longicaudum clade.

Keywords

glaseri-grouplongicaudum clademolecular characterizationphylogenetic systematicstaxonomy
Type
Research Paper
Information
Journal of Helminthology , Volume 99 , 2025 , e31
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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Footnotes

*

Joint first author.

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