Author's Personal Copy RESEARCH ARTICLE Morphotaxometry of a New Roundworm Heterakis equispiculis n.sp. (Nematoda: Heterakidae) from Rodents of Bundelkhand Region at Uttar Pradesh, India Sushil Kumar Upadhyay 1 Received: 14 March 2017 / Revised: 25 October 2017 / Accepted: 6 November 2017 Ó Zoological Society, Kolkata, India 2017 Abstract The two years consecutive study were con- ducted on the wild rodents, Rattus rattus (Rodentia: Muridae) from different urban locality of Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh, India, for the investigation of helminthes infec- tion. The nemic fauna isolated from the small intestine of hosts were processed and analyzed through the high effi- ciency light microscope. The round worms were charac- terized and identified as genera Heterakis (Nematoda: Heterakidae) by the typical of morphological generic diagnostic features as presence of well developed caudal alae supported by pedunculate papillae and precloacal sucker with chitinus rim and absence of cervical cordon and gubernaculums. The morphotaxometric statistical analyses were worked out with earlier described species of Heterakis from different vertebrate hosts. The level of morphotaxometric differences were validated by the application of most modern statistical tool, Polythetic divisive classificatory system and found to be significant. Thereby, on the basis of distinct morphological character- istics and differences, authors consider the roundworm species as new species Heterakis equispiculis n.sp. named after spicules size. Keywords Heterakis equispiculis n.sp. Á Rattus rattus Á Polythetic divisive classificatory system Á Morphotaxometry Introduction The diseases caused by the helminthes parasites are of tremendous significance to humans and domestic animals, resulting in great monetary fatalities. This is predominantly so in developing countries like India, which is sitting on the pinnacle of mass of parasites. Although all territory ani- mals are parasitized to a greater or lesser extent by various groups of endoparasites but out of that nematodes mas- querade more grim threat by emerging as a relatively commonly prevalent group of parasites invading the live stock particularly rodents (Levine et al. 1980). This is probably because most of the gastrointestinal nematodes have a direct life cycle and do not engage intermediary hosts (Levine et al. 1980). Gaiger (1910) published a list of nematode parasites of Indian livestock animals principally based on the material collected from domestic animals of Punjab and further added some more species to this list (Gaiger 1915). Based on various reports Baylis (1936, 1939) published a dissertation entitled ‘Fauna of British India’, Nematoda vol. I and II with a description of nematodes occurring in India and its adjacent countries. Consequently, nearly 20 years later Yamaguti (1961) pro- duced a series of treatise entiled ‘Systema Helminthum’ in which vertebrates of the world are included. Nematodes are diverse metazoans with an estimated total number of a million species (Lambshead 2004). For instance, Heterakis inhabits the lumen of the small intestine of mouse and rat (Winfield 1932). The capacity of intestinal factors to stimulate egg release depends on the infection status of mice. The modern farming practices, increased trans- portation of animals, food and people, and global warming have created environments that facilitate the rapid and widespread dissemination of water and food borne zoonotic pathogens. Heterakis is a small slender worm of a whitish & Sushil Kumar Upadhyay upadhyay.k.sushil@gmail.com 1 Department of Zoology, K.V. Subharti College of Science, Swami Vivekanand Subharti University, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh 250 005, India 123 Proc Zool Soc https://doi.org/10.1007/s12595-017-0252-9 T H E Z O O L O G I C A L S O C I E T Y K O L K A T A