Carp, Cyprinus carpio L., is one of the most
important cultured fish, especially in Central
Europe and Asia. In
Europe, it is infected with a large number of
parasites, many of them introduced from Asia,
mainly from the Far East of Russia and China. Parasitic worms,
i.e. helminths, are represented, among others, by
tapeworms (Cestoda) including the most pathogenic
species, the Asian fish tapeworm Bothriocephalus
acheilognathi Yamaguti, 1934 (syn. B. gowkongensis
Yeh, 1955), recently placed in the order Bothriocephalidea.
Other potentially pathogenic cestodes of carp
belong to the order Caryophyllidea, the species of
which possess a monozoic (only one set of genital
organs) and unsegmented body and use tubificid
oligochaetes as intermediate hosts.
Khawia sinensis Hsu, 1935 (Caryophyllidea:
Lytocestidae), is native in East Asia and was
described from the vicinity of Beijing in China
(Hsu, 1935). It successfully colonized a major part
of Europe and was also imported to North America. However, the veterinary importance of K. sinensis has decreased considerably during the last few decades, possibly as a result of the more
recent introduction of Atractolytocestus huronensis Anthony, 1958 (Lytocestidae), to Europe. In this paper, another caryophyllidean cestode, Khawia japonensis (Yamaguti, 1934), which occurred
originally in East Asia, is reported from Europe for the first time