Descriptions of four known species of the families Panagrolaimidae and Alloionematidae (Nematoda: Rhabditida) from Iran

Three species of the family Panagrolaimidae, namely: Propanagrolaimus filiformis, Panagrolaimus orientalis and P. rigidus, and one species of the family Alloionematidae, Rhabditophanes schneideri, were collected from the provinces of Kerman and Mazandaran, Iran. P. rigidus and R. schneideri were isolated from the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella. The descriptions, measurements and illustrations are provided for all species. Molecular analysis of P. rigidus based on sequences of the 18S rDNA places it close to P. davidi (HQ270131) and P. papillosus (KF011489) and two unidentified Panagrolaimus species (EU040129; KC522708). It is, however, separated from other P. rigidus populations sequenced previously. All species, except P. rigidus, are reported for the first time from Iran.http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:2A83F627-73CF-4489-9A6E-B2BB52086ED4