Biology:Adenophorea

Short description: Class of roundworms

Mononchidae eating a Mononchidae

Adenophorea or Aphasmidia was a class of nematodes (roundworms). It has been by and large abandoned by modern taxonomy, because there is strong evidence for it being a motley paraphyletic group of unrelated lineages of roundworms.

Characteristics supposed to distinguish Adenophorea are:

• amphids always post-labial, shape, pore-like to elaborate
• deirids are not seen
• phasmids are generally absent
• hypodermal glands present (excretory?) uninucleate
• simple non-tubular excretory system when present
• three caudal glands commonly opening through a spinneret at the tail tip
• male generally has two testes
• caudal alae are rare
• male with supplement glands in a single ventro-median row
• sensory papillae in cephalic region and along the body
• generally there are five esophageal glands
• marine, freshwater, terrestrial

As it seems, a number of these traits are plesiomorphic, and thus unsuitable to discern relationships.

References

• Tree of Life Web Project (ToL) (2002): Nematoda. Version of 2002-JAN-01. Retrieved 2008-NOV-02.