Longidorus kheirii n. sp. (Nematoda: Longidoridae) from Iran

Longidorus kheirii n. sp., a parthenogenetic species, was found in soil samples collected from the rhizosphere of Rosa sp. growing in a natural mountainous region close to Maragheh city, northwestern Iran. It is characterised by having a long body (6.7-9 mm), a 19.5-23 mum wide head continuous with the body contour, a truncate and slightly concave lip region with convex sides between the anterior end and the guide-ring, an odontostyle 113-130 mum long, an odontophore 69-97.5 mum long, a body width of 90.5-117.5 mum at the mid-body, a long, wide oesophageal bulb (149.5-193.5 x 39.5-48 mum), a tail length of 47-72 mum, a male with 11 ventromedian supplements and spicules of 85 mum in length, and four juvenile stages. The ribosomal 18S rDNA gene of L. kheirii n. sp., L. leptocephalus Hooper, 1961, L. profundorum Hooper, 1966 L. euonymus Mali & Hooper, 1973 and two unidentified species listed as Longidorus sp. 1 and Longidorus sp. 2, all recovered from northwestern Iran in the same survey, and the ITS1 of L. kheirii n. sp. and Longidorus sp. 1 were sequenced in order to investigate the phylogenetic relationships with other previously sequenced Longidorus species.