The following caryophyllidean tapeworms were found in freshwater fishes from Japan (species reported from Japan for the first time marked with an asterisk): family Caryophyllaeidae: Paracaryophyllaeus gotoi (Motomura, 1927) from Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (Cantor); Archigetes sieboldi Leuckart, 1878 from Pseudorasbora parva (Temminck et Schlegel) and Sarcocheilichthys variegatus microoculus Mori (new hosts); family Lytocestidae: *Caryophyllaeides ergensi Scholz, 1990 from Tribolodon hakuensis (Günther), T. ezoe Okada et Ikeda, Hemibarbus barbus (Temminck et Schlegel) and Chaenogobius sp. (new hosts); Khawia japonensis (Yamaguti, 1934) from Cyprinus carpio Linnaeus; K. sinensis Hsü, 1935 from H. barbus (new host) and C. carpio; *K. parva (Zmeev, 1936) from Carassius auratus langsdorfii Valenciennes in Cuvier et Valenciennes and Carassius sp. (new hosts); and *Atractolytocestus sagittatus (Kulakovskaya et Akhmerov, 1962) from C. carpio; family Capingentidae: *Breviscolex orientalis Kulakovskaya, 1962 from H. barbus (new host); and Caryophyllidea gen. sp. (probably Breviscolex orientalis) from C. carpio. The validity of C. ergensi, originally described from Leuciscus leuciscus baicalensis from Mongolia, is confirmed on the basis of an evaluation of extensive material from Japan. Atractolytocestus sagittatus (syn. Markevitschia sagittata) is tentatively considered a valid species, differing from the only congener, A. huronensis Anthony, 1958, in its considerably greater number of testes.
During a study on parasites of fish from cenotes (= sinkholes) in the Yucatan Peninsula, the following cestodes and acanthocephalans were found in 581 freshwater fish of 15 species: the cestodes Bothriocephalus acheilognathi Yamaguti, 1934, Bothriocephalus sp. (Bothriocephalidae), Nomimascolex sp. (Monticellidae), Proteocephalidea gen. sp. larv., Dendrouterina pa-pillifera (Fuhrmann, 1908) larv. and D. pilherodiae Mahon, 1956 larv. (Dilepididae), and the acanthocephalans Octospinifer-oides chandleri Bullock, 1957, Neoechinorhynchus golvani Salgado-Maldonado, 1978 (Neoechinorhynchidae), Polymorphus (syn. Arhythmorhynchus) brevis (Van Cleave, 1916) larv. (Polymorphidae), and an echinorhynchid larva. With the exception of B. acheilognathi, all tapeworms are found in Mexico for the first time; second-stage larvae of D. papillifera and D. pilherodiae from fish are reported for the first time.
Chimaerula bonai sp. n. is described from the small Intestine of Phimosus infuscatus (Lichtenstein) in Paraguay. The new species differs from the other two species of Chimaerula Bona, 1994, i.e., Chimaerula woodlandi (Prudhoe, 1960) and Chimaerula leonovi (Belogurov et Zueva, 1968), mainly by the intermediate number of rostellar hooks (30-34 compared to 42-46 in the former and 20-22 in the latter), longer rostellar hooks (31-34 pm versus 26 pm and 19-21 pm, respectively), shorter cirrus sac (58-82 pm versus 158-201 pm and 134-183 pm, respectively) and the absence of rosethorn spines in the cirrus armament. Modifications in the generic diagnosis of Chimaerula are proposed in order to conform it with some peculiarities of the new species (i.e., the relatively small and thin cirrus, the absence of rosethom spines in its armament and the small cirrus sac).
Cucolepis gen. n. is erected as monotypic for Cucolepis cincta sp. n., a new species of cyclophyllidean cestode of the family Paruterinidae. The new species is described from the squirrel cuckoo, Piaya cayana Lesson (Aves: Cuculiformes), taken from two localities in Paraguay in 1984 and 1985. This new genus is most similar to the genus Triaenorhina Spasskii et Shumilo, 1965 in terms of the hook morphology and large epiphyseal structures extending from both the handle and guard, but differs in several aspects of the strobilar morphology, such as the shape of the cirrus sac, genital atrium, uterus and paruterine organ. The strobilar morphology of the new genus strongly resembles that of the genus Francobona Georgiev et Kornyushin, 1994, especially the shape of the cirrus sac and genital atrium, yet Francobona spp. lack the developed epiphyseal structures observed in species of Cucolepis and Triaenorhina. Previous records and the nature of parasite-host associations between cuculiform birds and their cestode parasites are discussed.
Dictyterina cholodkowskii (Skrjabin, 1914) is recorded from iMnius collurio L. in Bulgaria (new geographical record). The species is redescribed and figured. A full list of synonyms is presented; it includes, among the other synonyms, Deltokeras delachauxi Hsii, 1935 (new synonym), Biulerina passerina of Oshmarin (1963) and Paruterina parallelipipeda of Paspalev and Paspaleva (1972). A survey of published records characterizes D. cholodkowskii as limited to the Palaearctic in six species of the genus Lanius (Aves, Passeriformes, Laniidae).
Some digeneans and cestodes parasitic in a population of the white-faced ibis Plegadis chihi (Vieillot) from Buenos Aires province, Argentina, arc presented. The digeneans Dietziella egregia (Dietz, 1909), Patagifer bilobus (Rudolphi, 1819), Ascocotyle (Leighia) hadra Ostrowski de Núfiez, 1992 and Posthodiplostomum nanum Dubois, 1937 from the intestine; Prosthogonimus ovatus (Rudolphi, 1803) from the cloaca; Athesmia heterolecithodes (Braun, 1899) from the bile ducts and the cestode Hymenolepis megalops (Nilzsch in Crcplin, 1829) from the cloaca, were recorded. The discovery of D. egregia, P. ovatus, A. heterolecithodes and P. nanum constitute new host and/or new geographical records. Adults of A. (L.) hadra, previously described in experimental definitive hosts, are first reported from a naturally infected bird. Hymenolepis megalops, a cestode of Anseriformes is first reported from Ciconiiforines.
The life cycle of marine Eubothrium sp. (Cestoda: Pseudophyllidea), from Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) was experimentally completed in one year and included only one intermediate host (Acartia tonsa Dana) (Copepoda: Calanoida). Adult cestodes were collected from farmed salmon, and ripe eggs released by the cestodes were fed to Acartia tonsa. Ingested eggs hatched in the gut and the larvae developed in the haemocoel of the copepod for 15 days at 16°C. A total of 170 seawater-reared salmon were exposed to infected copepods and the total prevalence of Eubothrium sp. in the salmon after infection was 95.3%, with a mean intensity of 15.0 (range 1-87). The infected salmon were kept in the laboratory where the growth of the cestodes was studied for eleven months. Mean length of the cestodes increased with time, but a large variation among the cestodes was observed. Growth and maturation of the cestodes were dependent on host size and the number of worms present in the intestine. No evidence of mortality of Eubothrium sp. was observed during the experimental period.
Metacestodes of Mesocestoides sp. were recorded from Sturnus vulgaris (Passeriformes: Sturnidae) in the Czech Republic in April 2002. They were found in a cutaneous cyst and in the thoracic region of the body cavity of the bird. This is the first record of metacestodes of Mesocestoides sp. in this host species in Europe as well as the first finding of the formation of a cutaneous cyst provoked by this parasite. Additional specimens from Apodemus agrarius (Mammalia: Rodentia) from Bulgaria and Lacerta agilis (Reptilia: Squamata) from the Czech Republic were compared with that from S. vulgaris. Sequence data from the V4 variable region (18S rDNA) were used to compare genetic variability among these and previously characterized isolates of Mesocestoides spp. A number of distinct clades were recognized, with metacestodes from L. agilis showing the highest degree of relative divergence.
Potorolepis gulyaevi sp. n. (Cestoda: Hymenolepididae) is described from the Chinese horseshoe bat, Rhinolophus sinicus Andersen (Chiroptera: Rhinolophidae), from southern China. The new species differs from known species of the genus by the shape, number and size of rostellar hooks, the relative position and length of the cirrus-sac and the morphology of gravid uterus. This is the first report of a member of the genus from non-marsupial mammals and the first record of a Potorolepis Spassky, 1994 from eastern Asia. The generic diagnosis of Potorolepis is amended.
Five new species of Acanthobothrium van Beneden, 1850 from the spiral intestine of a specimen of an unusual species of Himantura from the Arafura Sea off northern Australia are described. Acanthobothrium oceanharvestae sp. n. is one of 26 category 1 species (sensu Ghoshroy and Caira 2001) lacking post-ovarian testes; it differs from these in total length, number of proglottids, number of testes, cirrus sac size and details of the terminal genitalia. Acanthobothrium popi sp. n. is unique among category 2 species in its possession of post-ovarian testes. Acanthobothrium rodmani sp. n. is a category 6 species distinct from all congeners in the dense blade-like spinitriches on the distal surfaces of its anterior-most bothridial loculi and conspicuously tapered posterior bothridial margins, which are reflexed anteriorly. Acanthobothrium romanowi sp. n. differs from most other category 1 species in that its genital pore is distinctly posterior. It differs from the remaining category 1 species in size, testis number, cephalic peduncle microthrix form, proglottid shape, and bothridial loculus dimensions. Acanthobothrium zimmeri sp. n. is among the six category 1 species with post-ovarian testes. It differs from these species in total length, ovary shape, number of proglottids and testes and vas deferens extent. This brings the number of Acanthobothrium species with post-ovarian testes to 10, all of which are Indo-Pacific in distribution, and 7 of which parasitize Himantura species. A key to the five new species parasitizing Himantura sp. is provided. Sequence data for the D1-D3 region of 28S rDNA for the five new species and two congeners parasitizing other Himantura species shows no intraspecific variation. Analysis of these and comparable data for two species available in GenBank (Acanthobothrium parviuncinatum and Acanthobothrium sp. 1) showed an interspecific variation of 0.7-11.3% among species pairs. Bayesian, Likelihood and Parsimony phylogenetic analyses of these data for these nine species indicate that the five new species parasitizing Himantura sp. are generally not each others' closest relatives.