| Abstract: | A nematode isolated from the termite Reticulitermes flavipes (Koller) was identified and described as a new genus and species, Neosteinernema longicurvicauda. Primary distinguishing characters, by contrast to members of the genus Steinernema, were females having prominent phasmids, a curved tail longer than the body width at the anus, a spiral shape in juvenile-bearing females, and juveniles becoming infective-stage juveniles before emerging from the female; males having prominent phasmids, a digitate tail tip, a characteristic shape of the spicules (foot-shaped with a hump on the dorsal side), and 13-14 pairs of genital papillae, with eight pairs preanal; and infective juveniles having prominent phasmids and a filiform curved tail as long as the esophagus. Adult nematodes are found outside the termite cadaver. Diagnosis of the family Steinernematidae was emended to accommodate the new species. |
