Hirudo
| Hirudo | |
|---|---|
| Hirudo medicinalis | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Annelida |
| Clade: | Pleistoannelida |
| Clade: | Sedentaria |
| Class: | Clitellata |
| Subclass: | Hirudinea |
| Order: | Arhynchobdellida |
| Family: | Hirudinidae |
| Genus: | Hirudo Linnaeus, 1758 |
| Type species | |
| Hirudo medicinalis Linnaeus, 1758 | |
Hirudo is a genus of leeches of the family Hirudinidae. It was described by Carl Linnaeus in his landmark 1758 10th edition of Systema Naturae.
The two well-accepted species within the genus are:
- Hirudo medicinalis Linnaeus, 1758
- Hirudo nipponia Whitman, 1886
Three other species, previously synonymized with H. medicinalis, were described in 2005 and are gaining acceptance:
- Hirudo verbana
- Hirudo orientalis
- Hirudo sulukii
- Hirudo troctina
- Hirudo tianjinensis