SPECIES OF CONTRACAECUM PARASITIZING THE MAGELLANIC PENGUIN SPHENISCUS MAGELLANICUS (SPHENISCIDAE) FROM THE ARGENTINEAN COAST

LUCAS E. GARBIN; JULIA I. DIAZ; GRACIELA T. NAVONE

JOURNAL OF PARASITOLOGY

AMER SOC PARASITOLOGISTS

Lugar: Washington, Estados Unidos; Año: 2019 vol. 105 p. 222 - 231

0022-3395

Anisakid nematodes have a worldwide distribution and are associated with fishes,birds, and marine mammals from freshwater, brackish, and marine systems. The aimsof this work are to report for the first time Contracaecum mirounga parasitizing theMagellanic Penguin Spheniscus magellanicus, to report another Contracaecumspecies in the same host species, and to discuss the validity of C. spheniscus. Severaldead chicks, juveniles, and adults of S. magellanicus were collected along theArgentinean coast from 2002 to 2009. Nematodes were removed from digestive tractsand studied using both light and scanning electron microscopy. Nematode prevalenceswere 2.38% for C. mirounga, and 12.5% for Contracaecum sp. Contracaecummirounga was found in 1 penguin from Península Valdés, Chubut. This species isknown as a specific parasite of marine mammals such as Pinnipedia, therebysuggesting that this nematode is not as specific as believed. Another species ofContracaecum sp. was found parasitizing 1 penguin from the Río de la Plata rivercoast. It possessed an unusual interlabial morphology and arrangement of male caudalpapillae. Despite the low prevalence, the distinct morphological features are convincingand support the presence of a new Contracaecum species. However, a formaldescription is not presented because sufficient male specimens are lacking. Finally,Contracaecum spheniscus is considered as a junior synonymous of Contracaecumpelagicum. Future molecular studies might be helpful to determine the real diversity ofContracecum species parasitizing S. magellanicus considering the number of siblingspecies recognized among the anisakids.