Molecular evidence for inclusion of the phylum pentastomida in the crustacea

Abstract

The phylogenetic status of the phylum Pentastomida (tongue worms) was considered on the basis of comparison of nucleotide sequences of 18s ribosomal RNA from the pentastome Porocephalus crotali, the branchiuran crustacean fish louse Argulus nobilis, other crustaceans, and representatives of the Annelida, Chelicerata, Myriapoda, and Insecta. Maximum parsimony and invariants (at P < 0.04) analyses support an Argulus/PorocephaZus clade, providing strong support for the proposal that tongue worms are highly modified crustaceans closely related to fish lice.