Episode 2387
Australiformis
Fri, 2023-Nov-17 00:38 UTC
Length - 1:47
Direct Link
Welcome to featured Wiki of the Day where we read the summary of the featured Wikipedia article every day.
The featured article for Friday, 17 November 2023 is Australiformis.
Australiformis is a monotypic genus of acanthocephalans (thorny-headed or spiny-headed parasitic worms) that infest marsupials in Australia and New Guinea. Its body consists of a proboscis armed with hooks which it uses to pierce and hold the gut wall of its host, and a long trunk. It contains a single species, Australiformis semoni. This genus resembles species in the genus Moniliformis but is characterized by a lack of spiral muscles in the outer wall of the proboscis receptacle. The proboscis is armed with 12 rows of 13 to 15 hooks which are used to attach themselves to the small or large intestines of the host. The female worms range from 95 to 197 millimetres long, virtually all of which is the trunk, and 1.75 to 3.5 millimetres wide. There is pronounced sexual dimorphism in this species as females are around twice the size of the males whose trunks range from 46 to 80 millimetres long and 2 millimetres wide. Infestation of marsupials by A. semoni may cause debilitating inflammation of the stomach (gastritis) with granulomatous ulcers.
This recording reflects the Wikipedia text as of 00:38 UTC on Friday, 17 November 2023.
For the full current version of the article, see Australiformis on Wikipedia.
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