ABSTRACT
Pigmented hemosporidian parasites that do not exhibit erthyrocytic schizogony, and infect birds, chelonians, and squamates, have been classified in various genera over time. These classifications have reflected vertebrate hosts, insect vectors, and variations in morphology and life history observed in representative species. Side-necked turtles ( Podocnemis spp.) from the Peruvian Amazon were screened for hemoparasites and 2 species of hemosporid parasites infecting these hosts were observed. Molecular phylogenetic analysis of these new isolates, along with parasites from lizards, a snake, and a variety of Haemoproteus species from birds from both the Haemoproteus and Parahaemoproteus subgenera, strongly support the separation of the non-avian parasites into a separate genus. The name with precedent for this group is Haemocystidium Castellani and Willey 1909, and we propose that subgeneric classification of Haemocystidium and Simondia be applied to parasites of squamates and chelonians, respectively. We offer a description of Haemocystidium (Simondia) pacayae n. sp. and a redescription of Haemocystidium (Simondia) peltocephali ( Lainson and Naiff 1998 , n. comb.) Morphologically, the parasites are quite similar, with H. pacayae slightly more elongated than H. peltocephali. The discovery and identification of parasite species is urgent, especially in endangered species and wildlife inhabiting rapidly declining ecosystems such as the Amazon.
Subject(s)
Haemosporida/classification , Protozoan Infections, Animal/parasitology , Turtles/parasitology , Animals , Biodiversity , Brazil/epidemiology , DNA, Protozoan/chemistry , DNA, Protozoan/isolation & purification , Elapidae/parasitology , Erythrocytes/parasitology , Fresh Water , Haemosporida/genetics , Haemosporida/isolation & purification , Peru/epidemiology , Phylogeny , Polymerase Chain Reaction/veterinary , Prevalence , Protozoan Infections, Animal/epidemiology , Sequence Analysis, DNA/veterinary , South AfricaABSTRACT
We present a mtDNA analysis of Podocnemis expansa (n = 81) and Podocnemis unifilis (n = 228) turtles traded in Peru to evaluate the potential origin of these animals. In particular, we were interested in the relationship between samples reported in the Iquitos markets (IMs) and a Pacaya Samiria Natural Reserve (PSNR) where illegal hunting is presumed. Our mtDNA data showed that, for both species, all haplotypes found within the PSNR were observed in the IM, and that these markets also displayed haplotypes not documented in the reserve. This suggests that the IMs are recipients of Podocnemis turtles from within and outside the PSNR. The fact that most of the haplotype diversity observed in the markets was not found within the PSNR strongly suggests that Podocnemis genetic diversity is exploited in areas where conservation actions are limited. Hence, we recommend expanding Podocnemis conservation efforts outside of protected areas.
Subject(s)
Conservation of Natural Resources , DNA, Mitochondrial/genetics , Genetics, Population , Rivers , Turtles/genetics , Animals , Base Sequence , Cities , Commerce , Gene Frequency , Genetic Markers , Genetic Variation , Haplotypes , Molecular Sequence Data , Peru , Sequence Analysis, DNAABSTRACT
En el mercado de Belén (Iquitos, Perú) se obtuvieron ocho tractos digestivos de Podocnemis expansa y 18 de P. unifilis los que fueron analizados en búsqueda de parásitos, detectándose la presencia de digeneos y nematodos. Solo se estudió los digeneos, los que fueron identificados como Nematophila grandis (Diesing, 1839) Travassos, 1934, Halltrema avitellina Lent & Freitas, 1939, Podocnemitrema papillosum Alho & Vicente, 1964 y Telorchis hagmanni Lent & Freitas, 1937. Halltrema avitellina, Podocnemitrema papillosum y Telorchis hagmanni son nuevos registros para el Perú.
