| Gordioidea | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Gordius sp. emerging from a Stenopelmatus cricket | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| (unranked): | Protostomia |
| Superphylum: | Ecdysozoa |
| Clade: | Nematoida |
| Phylum: | Nematomorpha |
| Class: | Gordioida |
| Order: | Gordioidea Rauther, 1930 |
Gordioidea is an order (sometimes placed at superfamily level) of parasitic horsehair worms. Its taxonomy remains uncertain, but appears to be contained in the monotypic class Gordioida and contains about 320 known species.
Gordioidean adults are free-living in freshwater or semi-terrestrial habitats and larvae parasitise insects, primarily Orthopterans. Unlike Nectonematoideans, which are marine, gordioideans lack lateral rows of setae and have a single, ventral epidermal cord and their blastocoel is filled with mesenchyme in young worms but become open when older. [1]
The Integrated Taxonomic Information System lists the following genera in two families: [2]
Auth. May, 1919; selected genera:
Auth. May, 1919
Nematomorpha are a phylum of parasitoid animals superficially similar to nematode worms in morphology, hence the name. Most species range in size from 50 to 100 millimetres, reaching 2 metres (79 in) in extreme cases, and 1 to 3 millimetres in diameter. Horsehair worms can be discovered in damp areas, such as watering troughs, swimming pools, streams, puddles, and cisterns. The adult worms are free-living, but the larvae are parasitic on arthropods, such as beetles, cockroaches, mantises, orthopterans, and crustaceans. About 351 freshwater species are known and a conservative estimate suggests that there may be about 2000 freshwater species worldwide. The name "Gordian" stems from the legendary Gordian knot. This relates to the fact that nematomorphs often coil themselves in tight balls that resemble knots.
Ectobiidae is a family of the order Blattodea (cockroaches). This family contains many of the smaller common household pest cockroaches, among others. They are sometimes called wood cockroaches. A few notable species include:
The Tettigoniinae are a subfamily of bush crickets or katydids, which contains hundreds of species in about twelve tribes.
Bothrideridae is a family of beetles in the superfamily Coccinelloidea. They are known commonly as the cocoon-forming beetles or dry bark beetles. They occur worldwide with most native to the Old World tropics. In older literature, the family was often included in the family Colydiidae, but is now considered unrelated.
Gomphocerinae, sometimes called "slant-faced grasshoppers", are a subfamily of grasshoppers found on every continent but Antarctica and Australia.
Conocephalinae, meaning "conical head", is an Orthopteran subfamily in the family Tettigoniidae.
Phylini is a tribe of plant bugs in the family Miridae, based on the type genus Phylus. There are at least 440 described species in Phylini.
Delphacinae is a subfamily of delphacid planthoppers in the family Delphacidae. There are at least 1,700 described species in Delphacinae.
Cydninae is a subfamily of burrowing bugs in the family Cydnidae. There are about 11 genera and at least 40 described species in Cydninae.
Podopinae, known as turtle bugs, are a subfamily of the insect family Pentatomidae. The type genus is Podops.
Romaleinae is a subfamily of lubber grasshoppers in the family Romaleidae, found in North and South America. More than 60 genera and 260 described species are placed in the Romaleinae.
Batrachideinae is a subfamily of groundhoppers or pygmy grasshoppers. There are thought to be 20 genera in Batrachideinae, with genera found in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australia.
Geocoridae is a family of big-eyed bugs in the order Hemiptera. There are more than 290 described species in Geocoridae.
Tetriginae is a large subfamily of groundhoppers or pygmy grasshoppers. Members of Tetriginae occur on every continent except Antarctica.
Cladonotinae is a subfamily of groundhoppers containing more than 70 genera and 260 described species. These insects are found in tropical areas world-wide.
Gordiidae is a family of parasitic horsehair worms belonging to the order Gordioidea.
Chordodidae is a family of parasitic horsehair worms belonging to the order Gordioidea; its taxonomy is under review.
Parachordodes is a genus of worms belonging to the family Chordodidae.
Paragordius is a genus of worms belonging to the family Chordodidae. It was independently described by both Lorenzo Camerano in 1897 and Thomas Harrison Montgomery Jr. in 1898, though both authors gave the genus the same name.
Acutogordius is a genus of worms belonging to the family Gordiidae.
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