Kingdom Animalia Subclass Digenea Higher classification Digenea | Phylum Platyhelminthes Scientific name Echinostomida Rank Order | |
Lower classifications Echinostoma, Paramphistomum, Echinostomata, Hypoderaeum conoideum, Echinoparyphium recurvatum | ||
The Echinostomida are an order of flatworms, belonging to the large group Digenea.
Apart from the suborders listed, the superfamily Notocotyloidea and the family Pachytrematidae are also placed here as more basal taxa incertae sedis.
Life cycle
The adult inhabits the bile ducts of herbivorous mammals or humans. The immature eggs are passed in the faeces. The eggs enter the water, and hatch into a miracidium larva within 2 weeks. The larvae seek out the snail Lymnaea trunculata, and will die if they fail to find one in 24 hours. The miracidium penetrates the soft tissues of the snail, where it metamorphoses into a sporocyst. The final hosts are infected by ingestion of raw vegetation or water containing encysted metacercaria.
References
Echinostomida Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA