Dioctophyma renale


Di·oc·to·phy·ma re·na·'le

a large blood-red nematode found in the pelvis of the kidney and the peritoneal cavity of the dog; fairly common in wild carnivores like the mink, but rarely found in humans; the life cycle is through leeches ectoparasitic on crayfish, which are then eaten by various fish and finally by humans or any of a number of other fish-eating mammalian hosts.