Further description of Cruzia tentaculata (Rudolphi, 1819) Travassos, 1917 (Nematoda: Cruzidae) by light and scanning electron microscopy

Abstract

Species of Cruzia are parasites of the large intestine of marsupials, reptiles, amphibians, and mammalians. Cruzia tentaculata specimens were collected from the large intestine of Didelphis marsupialis (Mammalia: Didelphidae) from Colombia (new geographical record) and from Brazil and analyzed by light and scanning electron microscopy. The morphology of males and females by light microscopy corroborated most of the previous description and the ultrastructure by scanning electron microscopy evidence: the topography of the cuticle, deirids, amphids, phasmids in both sexes, a pair of papillae near the vulva opening, and the number and location of male caudal papillae, adding new features for species identification only observed by this technique.

Helminths of three species of opossums (Mammalia, Didelphidae) from Mexico

“…Remarks. We identify these nematodes according to the re-description made by Adnet et al (2009) , who established the number of caudal papillae (ten pairs of button-like papillae, symmetrically ventro-laterally located), as well as the single median papilla at the anterior cloacal lip and four pairs of post-cloacal papillae, as diagnostic traits of this species.…”

A new species of Cruzia (Ascaridida; Kathlanidae) parasitizing Salvator merianae (Squamata, Teiidae) from the Atlantic forest in Brazil

“…Currently, nine species of Cruzia are considered to be valid (Table 1): six have been described from mammal hosts, two are parasitic in reptiles and one occurs in amphibians (Sprehn, 1932;Ruiz, 1947;Wolfgang, 1951;Crites, 1956;Wahid, 1964;Costa, 1965;Ubelaker & Younus, 1965;Guerrero, 1971;Adnet et al, 2009).…”

“…Cruzia cameroni Wolfgang, 1951, C. tentaculata (Rudolphi, 1819 and C. tropidodipsi Ubelaker & Younus, 1965, present variation in the number of teeth per row of the pharynx that is close to that of Cruzia lauroi sp. nov. (Wolfgang, 1951;Ubelaker & Younus, 1965;Adnet et al, 2009) (Table 1). However, Cruzia lauroi sp.…”

“…The species of the genus Cruzia in which the set of morphological and morphometric characteristics is closest to those of Cruzia lauroi sp. nov. is C. tentaculata (Rudolphi, 1819) (Table 1), which occurs mainly in mammals of the family Didelphidae (Travassos, 1917(Travassos, , 1922Ruiz, 1947;Adnet et al, 2009). The latter species has also been recorded in Tupinambis teguixin (Linnaeus, 1758) (Squamata; Teiidae), and Rhinella marina (Linnaeus, 1758) (Anura; Bufonidae) (Ruiz, 1947).…”

“…nov. se difere de C. tentaculata em relação ao menor comprimento total do corpo dos indivíduos, pelo maior número de dentes por coluna longitudinal interna na faringe; pelo maior tamanho de divertículo; pelo menor tamanho de espículos; por possuir fêmeas com vulva mais próxima a extremidade anterior do que observado em fêmeas de C. tentaculata; e pelos Introduction Nematodes of the genus Cruzia Travassos, 1917, have been reported to inhabit the large intestine of amphibians, reptiles and, especially, mammals (Ruiz, 1947;Lent & Freitas, 1948;Ubelaker & Younus, 1965;Adnet et al, 2009). Until the current study, this genus included 12 nominal species that occur in North, Central and South America (Ruiz, 1947;Lent & Freitas, 1948;Wahid, 1964;Costa, 1965;Ubelaker & Younus, 1965;Adnet et al, 2009). However, some species of this genus need more detailed taxonomic studies and need to be re-evaluated.…”