Dichelyne alatae is a species of nematode

Nematode

The nematodes or roundworms are the most diverse phylum of pseudocoelomates, and one of the most diverse of all animals. Nematode species are very difficult to distinguish; over 28,000 have been described, of which over 16,000 are parasitic. It has been estimated that the total number of nematode...

, described on the basis of the worms recovered from the intestine

Intestine

In human anatomy, the intestine is the segment of the alimentary canal extending from the pyloric sphincter of the stomach to the anus and, in humans and other mammals, consists of two segments, the small intestine and the large intestine...

 of the whiting, Sillaginopsis panijus

Gangetic whiting

The Gangetic whiting, Sillaginopsis panijus , is a species of inshore marine and estuarine fish of the smelt-whiting family, Sillaginidae. It is the most distinctive Asian member of the family due to its flattened head and trailing dorsal fins...

from the estuary

Estuary

An estuary is a partly enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea....

 of the Hooghly River at Kalyani

Kalyani, West Bengal

Kalyani is a city and a municipality in Nadia district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority....

, West Bengal

West Bengal

West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

, India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. Dichelyne alatae is unique in having a small body size, deirids posterior to the oesophagus, short and wide caudal alae at the level of cloaca

Cloaca

In zoological anatomy, a cloaca is the posterior opening that serves as the only such opening for the intestinal, reproductive, and urinary tracts of certain animal species...

l opening, unequal, alate spicule

Spicule

Spicules are tiny spike-like structures of diverse origin and function found in many organisms, such as the copulatory spicules of certain nematodes or the grains on the skin of some frogs.In sponges, spicules perform a structural function....

s, a shield-shaped gubernaculum

Gubernaculum (parasitology)

In parasitology, the gubernaculum is a sclerotized structure in the nematodal cloaca wall that is instrumental in guiding the protrusion of the spicule....

, a different number of caudal papillae and a conical tail with spines in its distal region.