# Linta be

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{{Short description|Species of leech}}

{{Speciesbox
| genus = Linta
| parent_authority = Westergren & [Siddall](/source/Mark_Siddall), 2004
| species = be
| authority = Westergren & Siddall, 2004
}}

'''''Linta be''''' is a species of aquatic [leech](/source/leech) [endemic](/source/endemic) to [Madagascar](/source/Madagascar).<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bolotov |first1=Ivan N. |last2=Eliseeva |first2=Tatyana A. |last3=Tsiplenkina |first3=Iya G. |last4=Gofarov |first4=Mikhail Y. |last5=Kondakov |first5=Alexander V. |year=2023 |title=Long forgotten record of a freshwater leech on Madagascar indicates a host-associated dispersal event from continental Africa |journal=Ecologica Montenegrina |volume=61 |pages=56–67 |doi=10.37828/em.2023.61.7 |doi-access=free}}</ref> It is the only species in the [monotypic](/source/monotypic) genus '''''Linta''''', [described](/source/Species_description) in 2004 by [Stephanie Westergren](/source/Stephanie_Westergren) and [Mark Siddall](/source/Mark_Siddall).<ref name=WoRMS>{{cite WoRMS |id=1511644 |title=''Linta'' Westergren & Siddall, 2004 |access-date=8 March 2026}}</ref><ref name=WS2004>{{Cite journal |last=Westergren |first=Stephanie |last2=Siddall |first2=Mark E. |author2-link=Mark Siddall |year=2004 |title=Two New Species of Salifid Leeches (Arhynchobdellida: Erpobdelliformes: Salifidae) from South Africa and Madagascar |journal=[American Museum Novitates](/source/American_Museum_Novitates) |volume=3456 |pages=1-6 |doi=10.1206/0003-0082(2004)456<0001:TNSOSL>2.0.CO;2 |doi-access=free |issn=0003-0082 |oclc=47720325}}</ref> It is placed within the family [Salifidae](/source/Salifidae).<ref name=WoRMS/><ref name=WS2004/> The [generic epithet](/source/generic_epithet) ''Linta'' is derived from the [Malagasy](/source/Malagasy_language) word {{lang|mlg|linta}}, meaning aquatic leech. The [specific epithet](/source/specific_epithet) ''be'' is derived from the Malagasy language word {{lang|mlg|be}}, meaning "great" or "very much", and was chosen "in light of this species being very much a leech and being found in large numbers notwithstanding that it had gone undiscovered for so long".<ref name=WS2004/>

''Linta be'' has pharyngeal stylets, which are characteristic of the family [Salifidae](/source/Salifidae), within the suborder [Erpobdelliformes](/source/Erpobdelliformes); however, it has 5 pairs of eyespots, similar to leeches of the suborder [Hirudiniformes](/source/Hirudiniformes). Possession of characters of both suborders suggests that ''Linta be'' may be "a previously missing morphological link" connecting the lineages of the order [Arhynchobdellida](/source/Arhynchobdellida).<ref name=WS2004/>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

{{taxonbar|from1=Q21447138|from2=Q21351427}}

Category:Endemic fauna of Madagascar
Category:Animals described in 2004
Category:Arhynchobdellida
Category:Freshwater animals of Africa

{{Annelid-stub}}
{{Madagascar-stub}}

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Linta be](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linta_be) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linta_be?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.