Family PARAPHELENCHIDAE Goodey, 1951 (J.B. Goodey, 1960)

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Introduction

The Paraphelenchidae are a small family of nematodes, characterised by males without a bursa, females with a vulva as a transverse slit, and oesophageal glands abutting the intestine as a bulb amalgamated with the isthmus; female tails mostly mucronate.

The family is apparently widespread. Very few species are characterised adequately.

The family is common in tropical and temperate soils in association with fungi. The family is thought to be entirely mycetophagous, but there is little evidence for most species (Hunt 1993). The species for which data are available feed on a range of fungi.

The length of the life cycle is unknown but may be short. Reproduction may be amphimictic or parthenogenetic, but the former appears most common.

Some members of the family may be of economic importance in mushroom cultivation (Goodey 1960).

General References

Goodey, T., revised by Goodey, J.B. 1963. Soil and Freshwater Nematodes. London : Methuen 544 pp.

Hunt, D.J. 1993. Aphelenchida, Longidoridae and Trichodoridae: their systematics and bionomics. Wallingford, Oxon : CABI xx 352 pp.

History of changes