Dauer larva

Dauer (German for "endurance", "duration" or "permanent") describes an alternative developmental stage of nematode worms, particularly Caenorhabditis elegans, whereby the larva goes into a type of stasis and can survive harsh conditions. Since the decision to enter the dauer stage is dependent on environmental cues, it represents a classic and well studied example of polyphenism The Dauer state is given other names in the various types of nematodes such as ‘diapause’, ‘hypobiosis’, or ‘spring rise’, but since the C. elegans nematode has become the most studied nematode, the term ‘dauer stage’ or 'dauer larvae' is becoming universally recognised when referring to this state in other free-living nematodes. The dauer stage is also considered to be equivalent to the infective stage of parasitic nematode larvae.