First adult cyclophyllidean tapeworm (Cestoda) from teleost fishes: host switching beyond tetrapods in Africa.

Tapeworms (Cestoda) of the order Cyclophyllidea include over 3,000 species of intestinal parasites of tetrapods, especially birds and mammals including humans. However, adults of cyclophyllideans have never been found in bony fishes, even though hundreds of thousands of these hosts have been examined for parasites globally over more than 250 years. In the present paper, we report on a unique example of host switching of a tapeworm from birds to teleost fish in Africa. A new genus, Ichthyolepis (Cyclophyllidea: Dilepididae), is erected to accommodate Ichthyolepis africana n. sp., which is the first cyclophyllidean tapeworm that sexually matures in teleost fishes. The new species parasitises several freshwater elephantfishes (Mormyriformes: Mormyridae) including Marcusenius macrolepidotus (type host) in South Africa, Marcusenius senegalensis in Senegal, Mormyrus caschive, M. niloticus and Pollimyrus isodori in the Sudan, and Mormyrus kannume in Egypt. Ichthyolepis n. gen. is typified by a large musculo-glandular apical apparatus with rostellar pouch and a rostellum armed with robust hooks similar in size, but different in shape, deep, sandglass-shaped genital atrium, vaginal atrium and cirrus armed with tiny spines, thick-walled, subspherical cirrus sac, large, lobulated ovary occupying a large part of the median pre-equatorial field of mature proglottids, numerous testes filling almost entirely the postequatorial median field of proglottids, long and narrow, sleeve-like lateral uterine diverticula, and spindle-shaped eggs. Molecular phylogenetics considers Ichthyolepis as a member of the lineage consisting of dilepidids from swifts (Apodidae) in Africa. All fish hosts of the new tapeworm are bottom feeders, live in muddy biotopes and are insectivorous, which indicates that its intermediate hosts may be insect larvae.

Checklist of acanthocephalan parasites of South Africa.

Twenty-one species of acanthocephalans, representative of thirteen genera from ten families of seven orders and three classes, are included in this updated checklist of acanthocephalans in South Africa. Although South Africa appears to have a less diverse acanthocephalan fauna compared to some other countries such as Iran in Asia, or Brazil in South America, this is probably an artefact of fewer parasitological surveys.

An annotated list and molecular data on larvae of gryporhynchid tapeworms (Cestoda: Cyclophyllidea) from freshwater fishes in Africa.

An annotated list of larvae (metacestodes) of gryporhynchid tapeworms (Cestoda: Cyclophyllidea) from freshwater fishes in Africa is provided with numerous new host and geographical records. Newly collected materials from Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Madagascar, Namibia, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan and Zimbabwe practically double the total number of species reported from African fish so far. We confirm the occurrence of 16 species (five unidentified to the species level and most likely representing new taxa) belonging to the genera Amirthalingamia Bray, 1974 (1 species), Cyclustera Fuhrmann, 1901 (2 species), Dendrouterina Fuhrmann, 1912 (1 species), Neogryporhynchus Baer & Bona, 1960 (1 species), Paradilepis Hsü, 1935 (4 species), Parvitaenia Burt, 1940 (5 species), and Valipora Linton, 1927 (2 species). Additionally, metacestodes of four unidentified species of Paradilepis and Parvitaenia are reported from fish for the first time. Rostellar hooks of all species are illustrated and their measurements are provided together with a host-parasite list. The molecular phylogenetic analysis based on partial LSU rDNA sequences offers the first insight into the internal phylogenetic relationships within the family. Together with the morphological observations, the present study provides a taxonomic baseline for future studies on this largely neglected, but widely distributed and relatively frequent, group of parasites of African fishes, including economically important cichlids like tilapias and cyprinids.

Redescription of the genus Afrodiplozoon Khotenovski, 1981 and its only known species Afrodiplozoon polycotyleus (Paperna, 1973) (Monogenea: Diplozoidae) using a combined multidisciplinary approach.

The present study redescribes the monotypic genus Afrodiplozoon Khotenovski, 1981, a diplozooid parasite endemic to Africa, based on material collected during surveys carried out in the Limpopo Province, South Africa, from two cyprinid hosts Labeobarbus marequensis and Enteromius paludinosus. Morphometrical analysis of the composition of internal organs and attachment clamps, using light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy, provided details for the genus and species redescriptions. Posterior attachment apparatus can bear up the 15 pairs of the clamps with the first pair of clamps distinctly smaller and not fully developed. Molecular characterization of the second internal transcribed spacer (ITS2) rDNA and phylogenetic analysis revealed the position of Afrodiplozoon polycotyleus as a sister taxon to Paradiplozoon krugerense and Paradiplozoon bingolenisis, distant from other African representatives of the genus Paradiplozoon, Paradiplozoon vaaleense and Paradiplozoon ichtyoxanthon.

Expanded description of Lamproglena cleopatra Humes, 1957 (Lernaeidae: Copepoda) from Labeo spp. (Cyprinidae) with a key to species of Lamproglena von Nordmann, 1832.

The occurrence of the copepod Lamproglena cleopatra Humes, 1957, parasitising freshwater fishes in the Limpopo River System is presented, along with new morphological data. This crustacean was originally described parasitising a cyprinid (Labeo forskalii Rüppell) from the River Nile, Egypt. During 2014-2015 crustacean samples were collected from the gills of three cyprinid fish species, Labeo rosae Steindachner from Flag Boshielo Dam, Labeo molybdinus Du Plessis from Nwanedi-Luphephe Dam in South Africa, and Labeo ruddi Boulenger from the River Bubye in Zimbabwe. The specimens from the present study were morphologically similar regardless of the host, but exhibited some morphometric intraspecific differences in comparison with the type-specimen from Egypt. A description of L. cleopatra copepodid III stage and a taxonomic key to Lamproglena spp. is provided.

Description and phylogenetic position of a new species of Rhabdias Stiles et Hassall, 1905 (Nematoda: Rhabdiasidae) from the banded rubber frog, Phrynomantis bifasciatus (Smith) (Amphibia: Microhylidae), in South Africa.

The lung-dwelling nematode Rhabdias engelbrechti sp. n. was found in five of eight examined banded rubber frogs in Limpopo Province, South Africa. The species is differentiated from species of Rhabdias Stiles et Hassall, 1905 occurring in the Afrotropical Realm based on the presence of a globular cuticular inflation at the anterior end, the buccal capsule walls being distinctly divided into anterior and posterior parts, the buccal capsule size (6-9 µm × 16-18 µm), and the body length (3.8-6.1 mm). Rhabdias engelbrechti is the tenth species of the genus found in Afrotropical anurans. Our molecular phylogenetic analysis based on the complete sequences of the ITS region and partial sequences of large subunit (28S) gene of the nuclear ribosomal RNA demonstrates that the new species is more closely related to the Eurasian species Rhabdias bufonis (Schrank, 1788) than to two other species from sub-Saharan Africa represented in the tree. In addition, partial sequences of the mitochondrial protein coding cox1 and ribosomal 12S genes of the new species have shown significant differences from all previously published sequences of these genes from African species of Rhabdias.

Guppies (Poecilia reticulata) introducing an alien parasite, Camallanus cotti (Nematoda: Camallanidae) to Africa, the first report.

Introduced alien fish species and their associated parasites may result in a serious threat to indigenous biodiversity. Furthermore, this may have negative impacts on cultured fish as well as on native parasitic fauna. In the present study, the invasive Asian nematode, Camallanus cotti Fujita, 1927 (Nematoda: Camallanidae), is reported from the guppy (Poecilia reticulata) for the first time in Africa. This parasite is assumed to be introduced into Africa along with the introduction of exotic poeciliid fishes, which are known to be the most common hosts of C. cotti in ornamental fish industry worldwide.The presence of this parasite in both aquarium-cultured fish as well as fish from natural waterbodies is evidence of the introduction of the alien organisms due to insufficient prophylactic veterinary control during transfer of non-native hosts between countries and the spread of them by the anthropogenic introduction to natural systems.

A morphological and molecular study of Clinostomid metacercariae from African fish with a redescription of Clinostomum tilapiae.

The genus Clinostomum Leidy, 1856 (Digenea: Clinostomidae) has been reported in all ecozones of the world and a clear separation between the species of the 'Old World' and 'New World' has been recognized based on molecular studies. Recent works on Afrotropical species include redescriptions of C. cutaneum and C. phalacrocoracis, while C. tilapiae has yet to be studied using modern taxonomic approaches. In the present research, morphological redescription of C. tilapiae metacercariae from a new host, Synodontis batensoda sampled at Anambra River Basin, Nigeria, together with molecular analysis of nuclear internal transcribed spacer rDNA and cytochrome c oxidase 1 mtDNA are reported. We also provide morphological and molecular data from four further putative species of Clinostomum (morphotypes 1-4) from different areas of Africa, as well as the first report of C. phalacrocoracis in South Africa.

First Introduction of Two Australian Temnocephalan Species into Africa with an Alien Host: Double Trouble.

The redclaw crayfish, Cherax quadricarinatus (Decapoda: Parastacidae), is native to Australia but has been introduced to South Africa as a warm-water aquaculture species. In a South African natural waterbody, examined crayfish had high-intensity infections of 3 temnocephalan species on their body surfaces and within the branchial chambers. Temnocephalans were characterized using light and scanning electron microscopy and identified as Craspedella pedum, Diceratocephala boschmai, and Didymorchis sp. This is the first report of the introduction of Australian temnocephalans, C. pedum and Didymorchis sp., to Africa and expands the known distribution of these species beyond their presumptive native range. The present study also documents a naturalized population of C. quadricarinatus from a natural water body in South Africa, comprising a new geographical locality record.

The acanthocephalan fauna of Iran, a check list.

The acanthocephalan fauna of Iran is reported for the first time since the report of Pomphorhynchus perforator (von Linstow, 1908) Meyer, 1932 in 1964. The knowledge of the acanthocephalan biodiversity of Iran, with parasite-host and host-parasite checklists, is presented. The species of Acanthocephala are presented in alphabetical order, followed by the species of hosts, localities and references. A total of 30 known species of Acanthocephala from 21 genera, 12 families and 7 orders are reported from 80 species of different vertebrates of Iran. One species, Moniliformis moniliformis (Bremser, 1811) Travassos, 1915 was recorded from humans. The group of hosts with the largest number of reported species of acanthocephalan is Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes).

The invasive fish tapeworm Atractolytocestus huronensis (Cestoda), a parasite of carp, colonises Africa.

Biological invasions represent a serious threat for aquaculture because many of introduced parasites may negatively affect the health state of feral and cultured fish. In the present account, the invasive tapeworm Atractolytocestus huronensis Anthony, 1958 (Cestoda: Caryophyllidea), which was originally described from North America and has been introduced to Europe including the British Isles with its specific host, common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.), is reported from Africa for the first time. Its recent introduction to South Africa, where it was found in four localities where common carp is cultured, is another evidence of insufficient prophylactic measures and inadequate veterinary control during transfers of cultured fish, especially common carp, between continents. Together with the Asian fish tapeworm, Bothriocephalus acheilognathi, A. huronensis is another fish tapeworm with ability to spread throughout the globe as a result of man-made introductions of its fish hosts.

The description and histopathology of Leptorhynchoides polycristatus n. sp. (Acanthocephala: Rhadinorhynchidae) from sturgeons, Acipenser spp. (Actinopterygii: Acipenseridae) in the Caspian Sea, Iran, with emendation of the generic diagnosis.

Of the three known species of Leptorhynchoides Kostylew 1924, two are reported from North American fishes: Leptorhynchoides aphredoderi Buckner and Buckner 1976 and Leptorhynchoides thecatus (Linton 1891) Kostylew 1924. The third species, Leptorhynchoides plagicephalus (Westrumb 1821) Kostylew 1924, is commonly found in the Caspian and Black Sea from at least four species of sturgeons including Acipenser stellatus Pallas 1771 and the Acipenser nudiventris Lovetzsky 1828 from which Leptorhynchoides polycristatus n. sp. was found. No taxonomic work has been reported for L. plagicephalus for the last 90 years. L. polycristatus n. sp. can be readily confused with L. plagicephalus because of many superficial similarities. Such similarities include the general shape of the trunk, proboscis, and organ systems. However, L. polycristatus is clearly distinguished from the other three species primarily by having (1) 19-20 proboscis hooks per row; (2) the shortest hooks are anterior and the longest at the middle; the opposite is true in L. plagicephalus; (3) with a cuticular collar enveloping the base of the proboscis hooks; (4) the surface of its proboscis hooks is ribbed; (5) with a broad collar of multiple rectangular cuticular crests encircling the anterior end of the trunk; this is the only member of Leptorhynchoides with such a structure; (6) with many large ovoid uninucleated cells in the subcuticular layer of the trunk; (7) with paired glandular clusters near the male reproductive opening and of suction cup-like sensory structures on the bursa; (8) with dorsoventral ligament across the vagina; (9) cement glands are in a cluster of eight arranged in two horizontal tiers of four glands each; (10) with female gonopore near terminal; (11) with structures interpreted as possible microtriches on the surface of the trunk; (12) and with thinner eggs. L. polycristatus caused extensive histopathological damage to host intestinal layers. The armed proboscis invades and attaches to the host mucosa causing villi compression and necrosis of the epithelial lining with subsequent hemorrhaging and granulocyte migration. No encapsulation of the acanthocephalan is visible, and the worm can migrate deep into the smooth muscle layers of the muscularis extrema. The presence of L. polycristatus in the lumen of the host intestine obstructs and damages the absorbing surface of the host affecting the nutritional potential. Dead, necrotic host epithelial tissue and remnants of villi and crypts are visible.