First record of the acuarioid nematode Paracuaria adunca from South America, with new morphological details, morphometric comparisons, and a discussion about the presence of cordons

JULIA I. DIAZ; FLORENCIA CREMONTE; GRACIELA T. NAVONE

COMPARATIVE PARASITOLOGY

HELMINTHOLOGICAL SOC WASHINGTON, C/O ALLEN PRESS INC

Lugar: Whashington; Año: 2004 vol. 71 p. 238 - 242

1525-2647

The  acuarioid  nematode  Paracuaria  adunca (Creplin,   1846)   was   found   in   7  of   13   (54%)  Larus dominicanus  (Aves:   Laridae)   examined   from   several locations along the Argentine coast. It was only present in specimens from Patagonia; the intensity of infection rangedfrom 1 to 14 (mean 5 5.4). This is the first record of P. adunca  from  South  America  and  as  a  parasite  of  L. dominicanus.   Using   both   light   and   scanning   electron microscopy (SEM), the complexity of the left spicule and the number and arrangement of male caudal papillae wereobserved.  Although   P.  adunca  is   parasitic  in   several unrelated   bird   families   and   has   a   wide   geographical distribution,  the  dimensions  of  our  specimens  fully  agree with previous reports. The genus Paracuaria was characterized by the presence of rudimentary cordons; thus, it was considered the most primitive acuarioid. The cordons appearas finger-like structures within shallow grooves held tightly against the surface and extend posteriorly from the ends of the mouth and for this reason cannot be easily seen underSEM.