Little is known of the life history of Cobitiscf. satunini, a loach species native to the Caucasus and southern Caspian Basin. Life history characteristics of this species were examined in 568 specimens collected from the Siahroud stream (northern Iran) between February and June 2010. The specimens ranged in size from 27 to 103 mm total length and weighed from 0.13 to 8.93 g total weight. The overall sex ratio was unbalanced as females dominated, with 342 females and 226 males being caught (sex ratio 1.5 : 1). Length-weight relationships implied that growth was positively allometric for both sexes. The von Bertalanffy growth function was estimated to be Lt = 94.95 (1 – e– 0.49 (t + 0.34)) for males and Lt = 121.65 (1 – e–0.39(t + 0.43)) for females. Egg diameter ranged from 0.44 to 1.02 mm, with a mean value of 0.77 mm. Absolute fecundity varied from 212 to 4666 eggs. Fecundity relative to total weight fluctuated from 383 to 268 eggs g–1. These growth and reproduction traits may be interpreted as species life history capacity and/or adaptation to environmental conditions caused by the southern Caspian climate.
New records of the Ukrainian brook lamprey Eudontomyzon mariae (Berg, 1931) from the upper tributaries of the both Volga (Caspian Sea watershed) and Don (Black Sea watershed) river basins are documented. This significantly extends the range of the Ukrainian brook lamprey eastwards. The Ukrainian brook lamprey and the genus Eudontomyzon are the most distributed species and genus of the lampreys in Europe, respectively.
Since the publication of “The Atlas of European Mammals” in 1999 plenty of new data have been collected on the distribution of Apodemus spp. in Lithuania. These data have changed our knowledge of the comparative distribution of ?A. sylvaticus and A. uralensis in the country. Essentially, A. uralensis is widespread in the north-western part of the country, whereas A. sylvaticus is found only in southern and eastern Lithuania. Both species reach the limits of their geographical ranges in Lithuania.
The morphology of the nematode Klossinemella iheringi (Travassos, Artigas et Pereira, 1928), the type species of the genus Klossinemella Costa, 1961, was studied using specimens collected from the serrasalmid fish, Mylesinus paraschomhurgkii légu, Santos et Ferreira, 1989 (a new host record), from the Trombetas River, Para State, Brazil, by both light and scanning electron microscopy. This species was also recorded from the Jari River (Pará State), the Uatuma, Pitinga and Capucapu Rivers (Amazonas State), and the Araguari River (Amapá State). An examination by SEM made it possible, for the first time in this genus, to study in detail the structure of the cephalic end. Characteristic features are the presence of 8 cephalic papillae arranged in two circlets, well developed lateral amphids, and especially a crown of 8 cephalic, Y-shaped sclerotized pieces (outgrowths). The male possesses 8 pairs of caudal papillae (3 preanals, 1 adanal and 4 postanals), two unequal spicules (0.156-0.294 mm and 0.069-0.099 mm long) and a gubemaculum (0.027-0.045 mm in length); previously undescribed deirids were also found. This is the first record of this parasite from the Amazon River basin. The genus Proatractis G. Caballero, 1971 is considered a synonym of Klossinemella Costa, 1961, belonging to the cosmocercoid family Atractidae, and its type species is transferred to the latter genus as Klossinemella parvicapilico-rnnala (G. Caballero, 1971) comb. n.
Two little-known nematode species of the genus Spinitectus Fourment, 1883, S. petrowi Belous, 1965 (prevalence 25%, intensity 1-8) and S. gigi Fujita, 1927 (prevalence 10%, intensity 2-3), were collected from the gastrointestinal tract of the yellow catfish, Pelteobagrus fulvidraco (Richardson), from Liangzihu Lake, Hubei Province, central China, in September of 2002. The light and scanning electron microscopical examination of this material, supplemented by a few museum specimens of S. gigi collected from the catfish Clarias fuscus (Lacépède) in southern China, made it possible to study in detail the morphology of these parasite species and to redescribe them. The first species, whose correct name is S. petrowi Belous, 1965, exhibits some morphological features (e.g., unusually short vestibule, shape of pseudolabia and of the left spicule) not found in most other congeners; a unique feature is the presence of peculiar pairs of transversely oriented peg-like cuticular spines with rounded ends on the ventral surface of the female tail. Spinitectus gigi was found to have 28-31 cuticular spines in the first ring, relatively long distances between the 2nd-7th rings of spines, and anterior rings divided into 2 sectors; the excretory pore is located at the level of the 4th ring of cuticular spines; males posses 4 pairs of preanal- and 6 pairs of postanal caudal papillae and a pair of small phasmids. Spinitectus bagri Wang, Wu et Yu, 1993 and S. wulingensis Yu et Wang, 1997 are considered junior synonyms of S. petrowi, whereas S. clariasi Ky, 1971, S. ophicephali Ky, 1971 and S. yuanjiangensis Wang, Wu et Yu, 1997 are regarded to be junior synonyms of S. gigi. Spinitectus petrowi was not previously reported from China.
Adult specimens of five little-known species of spiruridan nematodes (Spirurida) were collected during occasional examinations of some fishes from the Poonch River in Jammu and Kashmir, India: Procamallanus (Spirocamallanus) bilaspurensis Gupta et Duggal, 1973 in Mastacembelus armatus (Lacépède) (Mastacembelidae, Synbranchiformes), Rhabdochona (Rhabdochona) indica Moravec, Scholz, Ash et Kar, 2010 in Crossocheilus latius (Hamilton) (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes), Rhabdochona (Rhabdochona) turkestanica (Skryabin, 1917) in Schizothorax richardsonii (Gray) (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes) and both Rhabdochona (Rhabdochona) hospeti Thapar, 1950 and Rhabdochona (Globochona) cf. chodukini Osmanov, 1957 in Tor putitora (Hamilton) (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes); besides these, unidentifiable physalopterid larvae were recorded from M. armatus and T. putitora. Their detailed light and electron microscopical studies revealed some taxonomically important, previously not observed features and made possible their redescription. Fourth-stage larvae of P. (S.) bilaspurensis and R. (R.) turkestanica are described for the first time. The latter is resurrected as an independent species. The following are considered to be species inquirendae: a total of nine poorly described species of Rhabdochona Railliet, 1916 from T. putitora in Balochistan, Pakistan, all listed in the monograph of Kakar et al. (2011), plus an additional 15 species of the genus reported from cyprinids and a catfish in the same region (Balochistan) by the same authors. Also three congeneric species from India (R. nemacheili Rautela et Malhotra, 1982, R. putitora Kaur et Khera, 1991 and R. tori Gupta et Srivastava, 1982) and one from Pakistan (R. charsaddiensis Siddiqi et Khattak, 1984) should be considered as species inquirendae due to their poor descriptions. The names of Rhabdochona putitori Anjum, 2013, R. indusi Soofi, Birmani et Dharejo, 2017 and R. sindhicus Soofi, Birmani, Dharejo, Abbasi et Ghachal, 2020 are invalid according to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature.
Specimens of three little-known species of Rhabdochona (Nematoda: Rhabdochonidae) were collected during occasional examinations of some freshwater fishes in India: R. (Rhabdochona) hellichi turkestanica (Skryabin, 1917) in Schizothorax sp. (Cyprinidae, Cypriniformes) from the Lodhomakhola and Rangit Rivers, West Bengal and Sikkim, respectively; R. (R.) hospeti Thapar, 1950 in Tor sp. (Cyprinidae) from the Rangit River; and R. (Globochona) mazeedi Prasad et Sahay, 1965 in Clupisoma garua (Hamilton) (Schilbeidae, Siluriformes) from the Farakka Dam Lake, West Bengal. Their detailed light and electron microscopical studies revealed some taxonomically important, previously not observed features and made possible their redescription. Fourth-stage larvae of R. hospeti are described for the first time. Rhabdochona hellichi turkestanica (syns. R. denudata filamentosa Bykhovskaya-Pavlovskaya, 1936, R. kashmirensis Thapar, 1950, R. schizothoracis Siddiqi et Khattak, 1984) is proposed as a subspecies, differing from the nominotypical subspecies R. hellichi hellichi (Šrámek, 1901) mainly in the shape of the distal end of the left spicule, molecular data and geographical distribution. Rhabdochona moraveci Katoch et Kalia, 1991 (a homonym to R. moraveci Duggal et Kaur, 1987) is renamed R. indica nom. n. The following six species are considered new junior synonyms of R. hospeti: Comephronema [sic] mackiewiczi Malhotra et Rautela, 1984, Rhabdochona moraveci Duggal et Kaur, 1987, R. bifidum Kakar et Bilqees, 2007, R. uvaginus Kakar et Bilqees, 2007, R. bolani Kakar, Bilqees et Ahmad, 2008 and R. cephalodiverticula Kakar, Bilqees et Ahmad, 2008. Rhabdochona edentati Paul et Majumdar, 1994 is considered a species incertae sedis.
Specimens of the type species of the ascaridoid genus Iheringascaris Pereira, 1935, I. inquies (Linton, 1901) (Anisakidae), were collected from the digestive tract and mesentery of its type host Rachycentron canadum (Linnaeus) (Rachycentridae, Perciformes) from off the Atlantic coast of South Carolina, USA, during May of 2011. Scanning electron microscopical examination, used for the first time for specimens originating from the West Atlantic, made it possible to study in detail some taxonomically important morphological features, such as the number and distribution of male caudal papillae, cephalic and cuticular structures, deirids and cloacal (anal) lips. The allocation of other, poorly described, species from different hosts in Indian waters to this genus needs to be confirmed.
Specimens of the nematode genus Rhabdochona Railliet, 1916 (Rhabdochonidae) were collected during helminthological examination of four species of cyprinid fishes in two rivers of the Amur River basin in the Russian Far East (Primorsky Region) in June 2011. Detailed light microscopical (LM) and scanning electron microscopical (SEM) examinations (the latter used for the first time for the reported nematode species) of the available material revealed the presence of three inadequately described nominal species of this genus: R. (Rhabdochona) denudata (Dujardin, 1845) from the spotted steed Hemibarbus maculatus Bleeker (Gobioninae), and R. (Rhabdochona) longispicula Belous in Roytman, 1963 and R. (Globochonoides) coronacauda Belous, 1965 from Culter alburnus Basilewsky (Cultrinae) in the Ilistaya River. Detailed morphological study of these worms, especially SEM examination, made it possible to reveal some previously unreported morphological features (e.g., the presence of sublabia or the character of ventral precloacal ridges) and to confirm other taxonomically important characters such as the shape of deirids, number of anterior prostomal teeth, number and situation of lateral preanal and postanal papillae or the detailed structure of the crown-like formation on the female tail tip in R. coronacauda. Unidentifiable Rhabdochona (Rhabdochona) gravid females were recorded from the humpback Chanodichthys dabryi (Bleeker) (Cultrinae) in the Ilistaya River and from the Amur minnow Rhynchocypris lagowskii (Dybowski) (Leuciscinae) in the Komissarovka River.
The actual distribution of gudgeons native to the River Kuban (Gobio sp., Romanogobio pentatrichus, R. parvus) is described based upon new taxonomic conclusions and reliable species identifications. Numerous new materials were collected during several expeditions by the authors in 2001-2003 to the Northern Caucasus, Western Transcaucasia, Voga, Kuban, Don and other rivers of the Sea of Azov and were re-examined from collections of the Zoological Institute (St. Petersburg, Russia) and the Chair of Zoology of Kalmykia State University (Elista, Russia).