A new genus of Rhinebothriidea from species of Psammobatis (Rajiformes, Arhynchobatidae) off Argentina.

IVANOV, V. A.; FRANZESE, S.

Rostock

Workshop; IX Workshop for Cestode Systematic and Phylogeny; 2017

University of Rostock, Alemania

Rhinebothriideans are parasites of a wide array of batoids (i.e., Myliobatiformes, Rajiformes, Rhinopristiformes and Torpediniformes).The order is cosmopolitan in distribution, with a great diversity in tropical and subtropical regions, having some genera a particular affinity for cooler waters. During a parasitological survey along the coast of Argentina, 4 species of the arrhynchobatid genus Psammobatis were caught in different locations: P. normani and P. extenta off Buenos Aires Province, and P. rudis and P. bergi off Tierra del Fuego Province. P. normani and P. rudis harborder a particular species of a new genus of Rhinebothriidea. Specimens of the new genus can be identified by having aunique pattern of septa and loculi on the distal bothridial surface, includinga central region with semicircular septa. It can also be distinguished from all other described genera in Rhinebothriidea by a combination of several morphological features. The species collected from P.normani and P. rudis can be differentiated from one another by features including the number of bothridial loculi, the shape of the cirrus sac and by slight P. normani and P. rudis in the microthrix pattern.Only a few specimens of P. bergi and P. extenta have been examined so far. We expect to find more representatives of the genus as the sample size of the different species of Psammobatis increase.