Class Phasmidia (Noun)
Meaning
One of two subgroups of Nematoda used in some classification systems.
Classification
Nouns denoting animals.
Examples
- The phylum Nematoda is sometimes divided into two subgroups, the Adenophorea and the Secernentea, but other systems use the terms Aphasmidia and Secernentea, or Aphasmidia and Phasmidia.
- Aphasmidia is an older term for the class Aphasmidia, a subgroup of nematodes that are often referred to as class Phasmidia in modern classification systems.
- The class Phasmidia is a subgroup of nematodes that includes species such as Caenorhabditis elegans and other parasitic and free-living species.
- Some nematode classification systems group the order Rhabditida into the class Phasmidia, while others place it in the class Chromadorea.
- The class Phasmidia is thought to have evolved from a common ancestor with the class Aphasmidia, and the two groups share many similarities in their morphology and physiology.