Invavita
| Invavita piratica Temporal range: Silurian | |
|---|---|
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Subphylum: | Crustacea |
| Class: | Maxillopoda |
| Subclass: | Pentastomida |
| Order: | Cephalobaenida |
| Genus: | Invavita |
| Species: | I. piratica |
| Binomial name | |
| Invavita piratica (Siveter et al, 2015) | |
Invavita piratica is an extinct, parasitic species of tongue worm, provisionally assigned to the order Cephalobaenida. Despite the common name, tongue worms are actually highly modified arthropods, not worms; the Pentastomida are obligate parasites.[1][2] It possessed a head, a worm-like body, and two pairs of limbs.[3]
The 425-million-year-old Silurian fossil holotype specimen was found still attached to its fossilised host, a specimen of the ostracod Nymphatelina gravida, at an undisclosed location in England.[1] It is now in Oxford University Museum of Natural History. It was first described in the journal Current Biology in 2015.[2]
Etymology
The generic name is a New Latin compound word combining "invasor" and "avitus," and roughly translates as "ancient invasive one." The specific name refers to piracy; both names referring directly to the organism's obvious parasitic lifestyle. [2]
References
- 1 2 Gill, Victoria (22 May 2015). "A 425-million-year-old parasite found attached to host". BBC Online. Retrieved 22 May 2015.
- 1 2 3 Siveter, David J.; Briggs, Derek E.G.; Siveter, Derek J.; Sutton, Mark D. "A 425-Million-Year-Old Silurian Pentastomid Parasitic on Ostracods". Current Biology. doi:10.1016/j.cub.2015.04.035.
- ↑ "Requiem for an ancient tongue worm". Yale News. Retrieved 5 June 2015.