Presence of Sabekia sp. (Pentastomida) in free-ranging Caiman yacare (Crocodylia, Alligatoridae) in the province of Corriente, Argentina.

GISELA L. POLETTA; SOLEDAD MOLEON; LUCÍA FERNANDEZ; PABLO SIROSKI

Congreso; 24rd Working Meeting of the IUSN-SSC. Crocodile Specialist Group; 2016

The pentastomes are a taxon of obligate endoparasites found into the respiratory system of terrestrial vertebrates. Within reptiles, they have been detected in snakes, lizards, turtles and crocodiles. In the respiratory tract of the definitive host, parasites must be capable of attaining sexual maturity. The objective of this work was to identify and characterize specimens of these parasites found in a wild individual of Caiman yacare from the Esteros del Iberá, an extensive wetland in the province of Corrientes, in northeastern Argentina. Six specimens of the Family Sebekidae were extracted from the lung lobes, fixed in ethanol (70 %) and mounted directly with lactophenol. Parasites were observed with magnifying glass and optical microscope. Morphological study found that all individuals were adult sexually mature females with two pairs of retractable hooks on each side of the mouth and lots of eggs inside. This is the first report on the presence of the genus Sebekia in Caiman yacare living in Argentina, and the second for Latin America, as S. oxychepala has been previously recorded in caimans from Corumbá, in the state of Mato Grosso, Brazil.