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Macrobdella decora, also known as the North American medicinal leech, is a species of freshwater leech found in much of eastern North America in freshwater habitats, although there is one disjunct population in northern Mexico. M. decora is a parasite of vertebrates, including humans, and an aquatic predator of eggs, larvae, and other ...
Glossiphoniidae are a family of freshwater proboscis-bearing leeches. These leeches are generally flattened, and have a poorly defined anterior sucker . Most suck the blood of freshwater vertebrates like amphibians , crocodilians and aquatic turtles , but some feed on invertebrates like oligochaetes and freshwater snails instead.
The majority of freshwater leeches are found in the shallow, vegetated areas on the edges of ponds, lakes and slow-moving streams; very few species tolerate fast-flowing water. In their preferred habitats, they may occur in very high densities; in a favourable environment with water high in organic pollutants, over 10,000 individuals were ...
The Glossiphoniidae, the freshwater jawless leeches, [citation needed] or leaf leeches (due to their shape) [11] are freshwater leeches, flattened, and with a poorly defined anterior sucker. [2] The family Glossiphoniidae contains one of the world's largest species of leech, the giant Amazon leech , which can grow up to 45 cm in length. [ 12 ]
Macrobdella is a genus of leeches native to freshwater ecosystems of North America, especially Canada, Mexico, and the United States. [2] The genus is commonly referred to as North American medicinal leeches .
Listen and subscribe to our podcast: Apple Podcasts | Spotify WALKER, Minn. — Minnesota's third-largest lake has a namesake only an angler could love: the leech. Earthworm's ugly aquatic cousin.
These leeches can live for up to a year between feedings. [6] Medicinal leeches are hermaphrodites that reproduce by sexual mating, laying eggs in clutches of up to 50 near (but not under) water, and in shaded, humid places. A study done in Poland found that medicinal leeches sometimes breed inside the nests of large aquatic birds, noting that ...
Helobdella is a genus of leeches in the family Glossiphoniidae, the freshwater jawless leeches. They occur worldwide. [1] These are small, flat leeches which do not feed on blood. [2] Several species in this genus are used as model organisms in the study of developmental biology. [1] It has been difficult to define species in this genus without ...