Abstract
Previously undescribed third-stage larvae of two species of Spirurida were found in the haemocoel of the stalk-eyed mud crab Macrophthalmus hirtipes (Heller) (Ocypodidae) in New Zealand. Examinations by light and scanning electron microscopy showed that the larger larvae (about 7 mm long) belonged to a species of Ascarophis van Beneden, 1871 (Cystidicolidae), the genus including parasites of fishes, whereas the smaller larvae (about 4-5 mm long) belonged to the Acuariidae, a family with species parasitic as adults mostly in aquatic birds. In a sample of 82 specimens of M. hirtipes collected in July 2002 from Papanui Inlet, on Otago Peninsula, South Island, 74 crabs (90.2%) were infected with larval nematodes with an intensity of 1-18 (mean 4.6) nematodes per crab; no distinction between nematode species was made in these estimates, although juvenile Acuariidae greatly outnumbered larval Ascarophis. Apparently, crabs play a role as intermediate hosts of these nematode species. This is the first record of larval representatives of Cystidicolidae and Acuariidae from invertebrates in the Australasian Region.
| Originalsprog | Engelsk |
|---|---|
| Tidsskrift | Folia Parasitologica |
| Vol/bind | 50 |
| Udgave nummer | 2 |
| Sider (fra-til) | 109-14 |
| Antal sider | 6 |
| ISSN | 0015-5683 |
| Status | Udgivet - 2003 |