Belostomatidae (Insecta, Heteroptera) as Intermediate Hosts of Digenetic Trematodes.

DIGIANI, M.C.

Comparative Parasitology

Allen Press

Lugar: Lawrence, Kansas; Año: 2002 vol. 69 p. 89 - 92

1525-2647

Two species of Belostomatidae, Belostoma elegans (Mayr, 1871) and B. oxyurum (Dufour, 1863), collected from the Arroyo Zapata, province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, were found to act as intermediate hosts of digenetic trematodes of the genus Stomylotrema Looss, 1900, parasitic in birds. Encysted metacercariae were mainly found in the abdominal cavity of adult males and females, with low prevalence and variable intensities of infection. Belostomatidae are first reported as intermediate hosts of digenetic trematodes, and become new intermediate hosts for representatives of the genus Stomylotrema. Natural infections with adults of Stomylotrema spp. were found in several insectivorous birds present in the study area.