''Terranova'' is a
genus
Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
of
parasitic nematodes. Species from this genus are known to parasitise
sharks
Sharks are a group of elasmobranch cartilaginous fish characterized by a ribless endoskeleton, dermal denticles, five to seven gill slits on each side, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the ...
,
rays,
sawfishes,
teleosts
Teleostei (; Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts (), is, by far, the largest group of ray-finned fishes (class Actinopterygii), with 96% of all extant species of fish. The Teleostei, which i ...
and
crocodilians
Crocodilia () is an order of semiaquatic, predatory reptiles that are known as crocodilians. They first appeared during the Late Cretaceous and are the closest living relatives of birds. Crocodilians are a type of crocodylomorph pseudosuchi ...
.
[Sprent, J.F.A. (1992]
"Parasites lost?"
'' International Journal for Parasitology'' 22(2): 139-151. doi: 10.1016/0020-7519(92)90095-3
However, in 2020, FrantiĊĦek Moravec and
Jean-Lou Justine
Jean-Lou Justine (born 1955), French parasitologist and zoologist, is a professor at the National Museum of Natural History (France), National Museum of Natural History in Paris, France, and a specialist of fish parasites and invasive species, inv ...
considered this
taxon
In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...
to be invalid on the ground that "its type species
. e., ''T. antarctica''has been designated a ''
species inquirenda
In biological classification, a ''species inquirenda'' is a species of doubtful identity requiring further investigation. The use of the term in English-language biological literature dates back to at least the early nineteenth century.
The ter ...
''", and split many of its species into two new-described genera, ''
Euterranova
''Euterranova'' is a genus of parasitic nematodes that have life cycles involving elasmobranchs.
The genus was created in 2020 to accommodate species which were previously included in'' Terranova'' Leiper & Atkinson, 1914 Leiper RT, Atkinson EL ...
'' and ''
Neoterranova''.
The type specimen and so far only found adult individual available for feature classification of ''T. antarctica'' is a female, and many features for such parasites are better discernible among males. Thus, in an article from 1990, the place of ''T. antarctica'' was considered as doubtful. Moravec and Justine argued that if the type species is doubtful, then by definition so is the entire genus, in this case, the genus ''Terranova''.
[ However, their reclassification was based entirely on analysis of morphological features, and they recognised that molecular analysis again may lead to a changed taxonomy.][
]
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q5270626
Parasitic nematodes of fish
Ascaridomorpha
Rhabditida genera