Parasitic animals of vertebrates

Archiacanthocephala is a class within the phylum of Acanthocephala. They are parasitic worms, which attach themselves to the intestinal wall of terrestrial vertebrates, including humans. They are characterised by the body wall and the lemnisci (which are a bundle of sensory nerve fibers), which have nuclei that divide without spindle formation, or the appearance of chromosomes, or it has a few amoebae-like giant nuclei. Typically, there are eight separate cement glands in the male, which is one of the few ways to distinguish the dorsal and ventral sides of these organisms.

Davaineidae is the name of a family of tapeworms that includes helminth parasites of vertebrates. Of the 14 genera recorded under this family, Raillietina is the best understood and most extensively studied. Members of the family are characterized by the presence of a crown (rostellum) at the tip of the scolex, and the rostellum is made up of mattock- or hammer-shaped hooks. The rostellum is surrounded by suckers which are armed with spines. These tapeworms are most commonly found in birds, and in few cases, mammals, which are the definitive hosts. Intermediate hosts are small insects such as

Praobdellidae is a family of hematophagous leeches which live on the mucous membranes of mammals and sometimes invertebrates. These are internal parasites that enter the body through natural orifices (usually nasal cavities and pharynx, more rarely the lower respiratory tract, anus, urethra, and vagina), and cause hirudiniases.

Psilostomidae is a family of trematodes belonging to the order Plagiorchiida.

species of worm