''Lethacotyle vera'' is a species of

monogenea Monogeneans are a group of ectoparasitic flatworms commonly found on the skin, gills, or fins of fish. They have a direct lifecycle and do not require an intermediate host. Adults are hermaphrodites, meaning they have both male and female repro ...

n of the family

Protomicrocotylidae Protomicrocotylidae is a family of monogenean parasites in the order Mazocraeidea. The type-genus of the family is ''Protomicrocotyle''. The genus was created in 1922 by Thomas Harvey Johnston and Oscar Werner Tiegs for a worm previously des ...

.Johnston, T. A. & Tiegs, O. W. 1922: New gyrodactyloid trematodes from Australian fishes together with a reclassification of the super-family Gyrodactyloidea. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales, 47, 83-131. The species is ectoparasitic on the gills of the brassy trevally, (''Caranx papuensis''), off New Caledonia and was found only in this locality. It is the second species of the

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial nom ...

Lethacotyle ''Lethacotyle'' is a genus of polyopisthocotylean monogeneans, included in the family Protomicrocotylidae. The genus includes only two species: ''Lethacotyle fijiensis'' Manter & Price, 1953 Manter, H. W. & Price, D. F. 1953: Some Monogenetic Tre ...

'' Manter & Prince, 1953 described after the type-species, ''

Lethacotyle fijiensis ''Lethacotyle fijiensis'' is a species of monogeneans of the family Protomicrocotylidae. The species is ectoparasitic on the gills of an unknown Carangidae, carangid fish identified in the original publication as "yellow jack". It is the type ...

'' Manter & Prince, 1953. The genus ''

'' is special in that its members have no

clamps Clamp may refer to: Tools and devices *Brick clamp, an early method of baking bricks *Clamp (tool), a device or tool used to hold objects in a fixed relative position (many types listed) ** C-clamp ** C-clamp (stagecraft) **Riser clamp, a device ...

on their posterior attachment organ or

haptor The haptor is the attachment organ of the monogeneans, a group of parasitic Platyhelminthes. The haptor is sometimes called opisthaptor (from ''opistho-'': behind) to emphasize that it is located in the posterior part of the body, and to differe ...

, in contrast to most

polyopisthocotylea Polyopisthocotylea is a subclass of parasitic flatworms in the class Monogenea. WoRMS (2019). Polyopisthocotylea. Accessed at: http://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=119220 on 2019-02-08Yamaguti, S. (1963). Systema Helminthum Volum ...

Monogenea Monogeneans are a group of ectoparasitic flatworms commonly found on the skin, gills, or fins of fish. They have a direct lifecycle and do not require an intermediate host. Adults are hermaphrodites, meaning they have both male and female repro ...

ns which have clamps. The body of adult ''L. vera'' is 2.7-5.4 millimetres in length. The body is elongate, flat, with a pointed head showing two anterior suckers. There are numerous anterior

testes A testicle or testis (plural testes) is the male reproductive gland or gonad in all bilaterians, including humans. It is homologous to the female ovary. The functions of the testes are to produce both sperm and androgens, primarily testoste ...

and a single posterior ovary. The eggs bear two elongate filaments. The copulatory organs include a sclerotised cone-shaped vagina, 125-175 µm in length, and a male copulatory organ, comprising a ring of 21-27 spines which are 50 µm in length. The length of the spines of the male copulatory apparatus is the main

diagnosis Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". In systems engin ...

character of the species, which allows its separation from '' L. fijiensis'', the only other species of the genus. The posterior part of the body of ''L. vera'' is asymmetrical. It bears two lateral flaps and a terminal lappet which is striated, and there are no

- this is a characteristic of the

''.Manter, H. W. & Prince, D. F. 1953: Some Monogenetic Trematodes of marine fishes from Fiji. Proceedings of the Helminthological Society of Washington, 20, 105-112. The etymology of the name of the species was, according to the authors of the taxon, "''vera'', Latin for true, because ''

'', a genus differentiated by absence of clamps, was based on true observations".

References

External links

Parasite of the day Blog: "''Lethacotyle vera''"

PLoSONE Blog: "Fish beware: a new species of parasite is discovered"
{{Taxonbar, from=Q15276666 Protomicrocotylidae Animals described in 2013