Bothriocephalidean tapeworms parasitic in the blackfish, Centrolophus niger (Gmelin) (Perciformes: Centrolophidae), are redescribed on the basis of the evaluation of freshly collected specimens and museum material. This evaluation enabled us to supplement species diagnoses by new morphological characters of potential use for phylogenetic analyses, including the data from scanning electron microscopical observations, and to provide a key to identification of the following four species occurring in this fish: Amphicotyle heteropleura (Diesing, 1850); Milanella familiaris Kuchta et Scholz, 2008 (both Triaenophoridae); Bothriocotyle solinosomum Ariola, 1900; and Echinophallus wageneri (Monticelli, 1890) (both Echinophallidae). Large spiniform microtriches were observed on the surface of the posterodorsal margin of segments of B. solinosomum, E. wageneri and M. familiaris. The invalidity of Atelemerus Guiart, 1935, first proposed by Bray et al. (1994), is supported by the present data and its type species, A. acanthodes Guiart, 1935, is newly synonymised with E. wageneri.
A new species of Prochristianella Dollfus, 1946 is described from the spiral intestine of the wedgenose skate, Dipturus whitleyi (Iredale) (Rajiformes: Rajidae), off the north-western coast of Tasmania (Australia). Prochristianella mattisi sp. n. is characterised by an acraspedote scolex, two oval bothria, elongate, bent bulbs, a retractor muscle inserting at the base of each bulb and the presence of gland-cells within the bulbs and prebulbar organs. The tentacular armature is typical heteroacanthous, heteromorphous, with a characteristic basal oncotaxy and a metabasal armature with hooks first increasing and then decreasing in size along each principle row. It can be differentiated from other species of Prochristianella by a combination of morphological characters, such as the metabasal tentacular armature with eight hooks per principle row, a unique basal armature without enlarged hooks on the basal swelling and genital pores slightly posterior to the mid-line of the segment. The description of P. mattisi sp. n. increases the number of known species within Prochristianella to 20, eight of which occur in Australian waters. A key for the identification to species within Prochristianella is provided.
A survey of proteocephalidean cestodes found in the firewood catfish Sorubimichthys planiceps (Spix et Agassiz) from the Amazon River is provided. The following taxa parasitic in S. planiceps are redescribed on the basis of their type specimens and material collected recently in the Amazon River, near the type localities in Brazil, and in Iquitos, Peru: Monticellia lenha Woodland, 1933; Nomimoscolex lenha (Woodland, 1933) (syn. Proteocephalus lenha Woodland, 1933); and Monticellia megacephala Woodland, 1934, for which a new genus, Lenhataenia, is proposed, with L. megacephala (Woodland, 1934) comb. n. as its type and only species. The new genus is a member of the Monticelliinae, i.e. has all genital organs in the cortex, and is most similar to Chambriella in possessing biloculate suckers and lacking a metascolex. It differs in the morphology of the cirrus-sac that contains a strongly coiled, thick-walled internal sperm duct (vas deferens) and a muscular cirrus of the appearance typical of most proteocephalideans, whereas that of Chambriella is sigmoid, with voluminous, tightly sinuous thick-walled internal sperm duct. In addition, Lenhataenia possesses a well developed internal musculature, whereas the internal musculature of Chambriella is weakly developed, formed by a low number of muscle fibres. The scolex morphology and distribution of microtriches of Peltidocotyle lenha (Woodland, 1933) (syn. Othinoscolex lenha Woodland, 1933 and Othinoscolex myzofer Woodland, 1933), Chambriella sp. and Choanoscolex sp. are described using scanning electron microscopy. The two latter taxa may be new for science and are reported from S. planiceps for the first time .
Four new species of the genus Hatschekia Poche, 1902 (Copepoda: Siphonostomatoida: Hatschekiidae) are described based on female specimens collected from pufferfishes (Tetraodontiformes: Tetraodontidae) caught in coastal waters off the Ryukyu Islands, Japan: H. longiabdominalis sp. n. on Arothron hispidus (Linnaeus), H. geniculata sp. n. on A. hispidus (type host) and A. stellatus (Bloch et Schneider), H. ellipsocorpa sp. n. on A. mappa (Lesson), and H. boonah sp. n. on A. nigropunctatus (Bloch et Schneider) (type host) and A. meleagris (Schneider). Hatschekia longiabdominalis sp. n. and H. boonah sp. n. differ from all other congeners by sharing an unusual, projected abdomen and a fusiform trunk with posterior lobes; these two species are differentiated from each other by the shape of the dorsal chitinous frame on the cephalothorax. Hatschekia geniculata sp. n. can be distinguished by the combination of the following morphological characters: a rhomboidal cephalothorax with a pair of lateral conical protrusions, a cylindrical trunk with posterior lobes and a bent abdomen with a dorsal protrusion. Hatschekia ellipsocorpa sp. n. resembles H. pholas (Wilson, 1906) but can be distinguished from the latter by the possession of one distal and one inner setae on the terminal endopodal segment of legs 1 and 2. Hatschekia pholas is also redescribed based on female specimens from the tetraodontid A. stellatus. At present, 44 nominal species of the genus have been reported from Japan, including four new species described in this paper; 38 of them have been described originally from Japan.