Because shifts in host–parasite relationships can alter host populations, attention should be given to the parasites that introduced species take with them or acquire in their introduced range. The Cuban treefrog, Osteopilus septentrionalis, is a successful invasive species in Florida with its parasites in the native range being well-documented, but there is a void in the literature regarding what parasites were lost or introduced in its expansion. We necropsied 330 O. septentrionalis from Tampa, FL and compared their macroparasites to those of O. septentrionalis in their native range and to the parasites of anurans native to the Tampa, FL area to determine the species O. septentrionalis likely introduced or acquired in Florida. At least nine parasite species (Aplectana sp., Oswaldocruzia lenteixeirai, Cylindrotaenia americana, Physaloptera sp., Rhabdias sp., Centrorhynchus sp., unidentified trematode metacercariae, unidentified larval acuariids, and unidentified pentastomids) were isolated. We found no differences in parasite communities of adult male and female frogs, which averaged 19.36 parasite individuals and 1.39 parasite species per adult frog, and had an overall prevalence of 77.52%. Acuariid larvae were likely acquired by O. septentrionalis in FL because they are not found in their native range. O. lenteixeirai was likely introduced because it is commonly reported in O. septentrionalis' native range but has never been reported in FL-native anurans. Aplectana sp. is also likely introduced because it has been reported in several anurans in Cuba but only reported once in Florida. O. septentrionalis tended to harbor fewer of its native parasites in the introduced range, which is consistent with the enemy release hypothesis and potentially creates an immunological advantage for this invasive host. Because native populations can be threatened by introduced parasites, there is a need to further explore the frequency and rate at which non-native hosts introduce parasites.
In this article we present a biogeographical assessment of species diversity within the Mysida (Crustacea: Malacostraca: Peracarida) from inland waters. Inland species represent 6.7% (72 species) of mysid diversity. These species represent three of the four families within the Mysida (Lepidomysidae, Stygiomysidae, and Mysidae) and are concentrated in the Palaearctic and Neotropical regions. The inland mysid species distributional patterns can be explained by four main groups representing different freshwater invasion routes: (1) Subterranean Tethyan relicts (24 spp.); (2) Autochthonous Ponto-Caspian endemics (20 spp.); (3) Mysis spp. 'Glacial Relicts' (8 spp.); and (4) Euryhaline estuarine species (20 spp.). The center of inland mysid species diversity is the Ponto-Caspian region, containing 24 species, a large portion of which are the results of a radiation in the genus Paramysis.
A survey of mysid crustaceans in near-shore habitats of the Cayman Islands and the Turks and Caicos Islands, BWI yielded two new species of mysids belonging to the genus Heteromysis S. I. Smith, 1873. H. (Olivemysis) modlini n. sp. occurred on live bottom habitats in shallow waters of Grand Cayman Island, and H. (Olivemysis) mclellandi n. sp. from sponges in depths of 21–27 m on deep fringing reefs off Pine Cay, Turks and Caicos Islands. H. modlini may be distinguished from closely related species in the western Atlantic by the following characters: (1) 6–7 robust flagellated setae on the medial margin of the carpo-propodus of thoracic endopod 3, (2) 3–5 and 4–6 bent, attenuated spines on male pleopods 3 and 4, respectively, (3) 3–4 spiniform setae along the medial margin of the uropodal endopod, and (4) 10–16 spinules along the anterior ¾ of the telsonic cleft, 14–19 spiniform setae completely lining the lateral margins of the telson, and each apical lobe of the telson with a pair of spiniform setae, the outer 1.6–2.0 times longer than the inner. Heteromysis (Olivemysis) mclellandi is unique among known heteromysids in having modified attenuated setae on pleopods 1– 5 of both males and females, and may be distinguished further from its related Caribbean congeners by the following characters: (1) tuberculate flagellated seta on the antennular peduncle, (2) 8–9 flagellated setae on the carpo-propodus of thoracic endopod 3, and (3) telson cleft depth: telson length ratio of about 1/6, and outer: inner length ratio of apical telson setae of 1.2–1.6. Diagnostic tables separating the two new species from related Caribbean congeners are presented. The subgenus Olivemysis Băcescu, 1968 is diagnosed and discussed; based on a critical review of the literature, 10 species, besides H. (Olivemysis) modlini n. sp. and H. (Olivemysis) mclellandi n. sp., are placed in this subgenus, bringing its total species number to 30.
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