''Plasmodium atheruri'' is a

species A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...

of the genus ''

Plasmodium ''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a Hematophagy, blood-feeding insect host (biology), host which then inj ...

'' subgenus ''

Vinckeia ''Vinckeia'' is a subgenus of the genus ''Plasmodium'' — all of which are parasitic Alveolata, alveolates. The subgenus ''Vinckeia'' was created by Cyril Garnham in 1964 to accommodate the mammalian parasites other than those infecting the prim ...

''. As in all members of this genus, it is

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives (at least some of the time) on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The ent ...

vertebrate Vertebrates () are animals with a vertebral column (backbone or spine), and a cranium, or skull. The vertebral column surrounds and protects the spinal cord, while the cranium protects the brain. The vertebrates make up the subphylum Vertebra ...

and

insect Insects (from Latin ') are Hexapoda, hexapod invertebrates of the class (biology), class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body (Insect morphology#Head, head, ...

host A host is a person responsible for guests at an event or for providing hospitality during it. Host may also refer to: Places * Host, Pennsylvania, a village in Berks County * Host Island, in the Wilhelm Archipelago, Antarctica People * ...

s. The natural vertebrate host is the African

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp Spine (zoology), spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two Family (biology), families of animals: the Old World porcupines of the family Hystricidae, and the New ...

('' Atherurus africanus'') but it is possible to infect the large vesper

mouse A mouse (: mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus'' ...

(''

Calomys callosus The large vesper mouse (''Calomys callosus'') is a South American rodent species of the family Cricetidae. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil and Paraguay. Its karyotype has 2n = 50 and FN = 66. It was formerly synonymized with '' C. ...

'') and ''

Meriones unguiculatus The Mongolian gerbil or Mongolian jird (''Meriones unguiculatus'') is a rodent belonging to the subfamily Gerbillinae. Their body size is typically , with a tail, and body weight , with adult males larger than females. The animal is used in s ...

''.

Taxonomy

This species was described in 1958 by den Berghe, Peel, Chardome and Lambrecht.

Vectors

* ''

Anopheles machardyi ''Anopheles'' () is a genus of mosquito first described by the German entomologist J. W. Meigen in 1818, and are known as nail mosquitoes and marsh mosquitoes. Many such mosquitoes are vectors of the parasite ''Plasmodium'', a genus of protoz ...

'' * '' Anopheles smithii'' * ''

Anopheles stephensi ''Anopheles stephensi'' is a primary mosquito vector of malaria in urban India and is included in the same subgenus as ''Anopheles gambiae'', the primary malaria vector in Africa. ''A. gambiae'' consists of a complex of morphologically identical ...

Distribution

This species is found in Africa.

References

atheruri Apicomplexa species {{plasmodium-stub