Cercariae of bird schistosomes are traditionally considered to be very similar in their morphological characteristics. In order to solve the problem, we tested some methods which might be suitable for cercarial differentiation. Fourteen isolates of three Trichobilharzia species (T. szidati, T. franki, T. regenti) occurring sympatrically in Central Europe were used. Dimensions of individual cercariae do not represent a useful criterion for identification, because the intraspecific variability exceeds the interspecific one. On the other hand, chaetotaxy appears a promising way for discrimination, although some sensory papillae do not stain sufficiently with silver nitrate. The papillary pattern (i.e. number and relative position of papillae) is specific for all Trichobilharzia species studied by us. Therefore, we compiled an identification key for the three Trichobilharzia species. In addition, we tried to find species-specific surface saccharide epitopes; none of the labeled lectin probes can be used as a speciesspecific marker.
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