Paradistomoidella cerberi n.g., n.sp. and Paracanthostomum cerberi from Cerberus rhynchops, Xenopharynx pyriformis and Allopharynx mehrai from Ptyas korros, Neopronocephalus orientalis from Geoemyda spinosa, and Duthiersia expansa from Varanus salvator are all reported from the area of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Paradistomoidella cerberi most closely resembles members of Paradistomoides but is characterized by relatively short caeca, a cirrus sac containing a bipartite rather than sinous internal seminal vesicle, and unevenly-sized suckers. Kuala Lumpur is a new locality for Paracanthostomum cerberi, X. pyriformis, A. mehrai, and D. expansa. Ptyas korros is a new host for X. pyriformis and G. spinosa is a new host for N. orientalis.
Three new species of Merizocotyle Cerfontaine, 1894 (Monogenea: Monocotylidae) are described from the nasal tissues of stingrays collected off Borneo. Merizocotyle macrostrobus n. sp. is described from the dwarf whipray Himantura walga (Müller & Henle) collected in shallow waters off Sematan, Sarawak, Malaysia. This species can be distinguished from the other members of the genus by the morphology of the sclerotised male copulatory organ, which is long with many twists and loops. The vaginae of this species are also long and looped. Merizocotyle papillae n. sp. is described from the roughnose stingray Pastinachus solocirostris Last, Manjaji & Yearsley collected off Sematan and Mukah, Sarawak, Malaysia. It is distinguished from the other species of Merizocotyle by the morphology of the male copulatory organ, which is a sclerotised tube that expands slightly and then tapers at the distal end, and by the presence of papillae on the dorsal edge of the haptor. Merizocotyle rhadinopeos n. sp. is described from the whitenose whip ray Himantura uarnacoides (Bleeker) collected off Manggar, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. It can be differentiated by the male copulatory organ, which is a short, narrow, curved, sclerotised tube tapering distally, and the path of the ovary, which runs anteriorly to the base of the oötype. We also provide details of new host and/or locality records for M. australensis (Beverley-Burton & Williams, 1989) Chisholm, Wheeler & Beverley-Burton, 1995, M. icopae Beverley-Burton & Williams, 1989 and M. pseudodasybatis (Hargis, 1955) Chisholm, Wheeler & Beverley-Burton, 1995.
A new genus of the Monogenea, Teraplectanum n. g., is proposed for two new species of diplectanids found on the gills of Terapon theraps Cuvier collected off Carey Island, Peninsular Malaysia. The genus is based on a unique arrangement of the male reproductive system. In the new species spermatozoa stored in the seminal vesicle and secretions stored in the prostatic reservoir are transferred into, and mixed to form semen within, a special sclerotized auxiliary piece (SAP), and not within the copulatory tube as occurs in the majority of monogeneans. Teraplectanum species also possess a unique sclerotized vaginal loop through which the vaginal tube passes en route from the vaginal pore to the seminal receptacle. The two new species are Teraplectanum crassitubus n. sp. (type species) and T. angustitubus n. sp. They differ from each other mainly in the morphology of their copulatory tube: in T. crassitubus, the proximal region of this tube is thicker compared to the slender proximal region in T. angustitubus, although in both cases the tube tapers and twists distally. Of the known diplectanid species, only Diplectanum undulicirrosum Zhang et al., 2000 (currently considered incertae sedis) possesses such sclerotized hard parts, which suggests the same type of arrangement of the male reproductive system. Consequently, D. undulicirrosum is re-assigned to this new genus as Teraplectanum undulicirrosum (Zhang et al., 2000) n. comb. The copulatory tube of T. undulicirrosum is similar to the slender, undulating copulatory tube of T. angustitubus but does not taper distally as in the latter species.
Numerous global reports of the species Udonella caligorum, currently thought to be a species complex, suggests that the group may be species-rich. Herein we describe Udonella fugu n. sp., previously described as U. caligorum, found on the parasitic copepod Pseudocaligus fugu infecting Takifugu spp. from Japan. Using morphological data U. fugu can be distinguished from the current valid species by at least one of the traditionally used characters in udonellid taxonomy, and phylogenetic analyses of ssrDNA sequence data for U. fugu and other udonellids confirm that U. fugu forms a distinct clade from other udonellids including U. caligorum. Variable regions in the ssrDNA demonstrated a range of between 2.75 and 5.5% difference between currently recognized species of Udonella. These differences in ssrDNA sequences are phylogenetically useful when distinguishing between morphologically similar udonellids and can be used in conjunction with other data (morphology, phylogeography and fish host) to help clarify udonellid systematics. Udonella fugu was also found to cause significant damage to farmed tiger puffers through their feeding activities. Individual skin lesions were round in shape but merged with adjoining lesions to form more extensive lacerations. In some of the specimens from P. fugu infecting Takifugu niphobles, the protozoan ciliate Trichodina was found on the udonellid body surface and in their intestinal contents. We conclude that the udonellids are a more species-rich group than currently recognized, that early descriptions of new species may have been synonymized with U. caligorum in error and that the frequent global reports of U. caligorum may actually represent new species. This has led to a wide range of morphological descriptions for U. caligorum, blurring the usefulness of morphological data for the group.
In this study we take a closer look at the diseases that afflicted Japanese police officers who were stationed in a remote mountainous region of Taiwan from 1921 to 1944. Samples were taken from the latrine at the Huabanuo police outpost, and analyzed for the eggs of intestinal parasites, using microscopy and ELISA. The eggs of Eurytrema sp., (possibly E. pancreaticum), whipworm and roundworm were shown to be present. True infection with Eurytrema would indicate that the policemen ate uncooked grasshoppers and crickets infected with the parasite. However, false parasitism might also occur if the policemen ate the uncooked intestines of infected cattle, and the Eurytrema eggs passed through the human intestines. These findings provide an insight into the diet and health of the Japanese colonists in Taiwan nearly a century ago.
The ornamental fish trade provides a pathway for the global translocation of aquatic parasites. We examined a total of 1020 fish imported from Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, or Sri Lanka to Australia (including freshwater and marine fish species) for monogenean ectoparasites. Fish were received following veterinary certification that they showed no clinical signs of pests and diseases from the exporting country and visual inspection at Australian border control. Australian import conditions require mandatory treatment for goldfish with parasiticides (e.g. trichlorfon, formaldehyde, sodium chloride) for the presence of gill flukes (Dactylogyrus vastator Nybelin, 1924 and Dactylogyrus extensus Mueller and Van Cleave, 1932) prior to export. Over 950 individual parasites were detected in five imported fish species, representing 14 monogenean species. Seven Dactylogyrus spp. including D. vastator and three Gyrodactylus spp. infected goldfish, Carassius auratus Linnaeus, 1758, from Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand. Dactylogyrus ostraviensis Řehulka, 1988, infected rosy barb, Pethia conchonius Hamilton, 1822, from Singapore, Sri Lanka, and Thailand while two Trianchoratus spp. infected three spot gourami, Trichopodus trichopterus Pallas, 1970 and pearl gourami Trichopodus leerii Bleeker, 1852, from Sri Lanka. Urocleidoides reticulatus Mizelle & Price, 1964, infected guppy, Poecilia reticulata Peters, 1859, from Sri Lanka. The discovery of D. vastator in goldfish, as well as 13 other monogenean species, shows that pre-export health requirements, which include chemical treatment of goldfish, and inspection of all ornamental fish species did not prevent infection by monogeneans. Inspection prior to exportation and at border control must account for the highly cryptic nature of monogenean parasites and consider alternatives to current pre-export conditions and visual inspection at border control.