New species of Allopharynx (Digenea: Plagiorchiidae) and other helminths in Uranoscodon superciliosus (Squamata: Tropiduridae) from Amazonian Brazil

HELMINTH FAUNA OF THECADACTYLUS RAPICAUDA (HOUTTUYN, 1782) (SQUAMATA, PHYLLODACTYLIDAE) IN THE CAXIUANÃ NATIONAL FOREST, FROM THE BRAZILIAN EASTERN AMAZON

The Amazon region is an important region for biodiversity, and many new species are described for this region each year. However, the diversity of parasites infecting Amazonian reptiles is still poorly known, and there are few studies about how parasite communities of these hosts are structured. Our study was designed to elucidate the parasite community structure of Thecadactylus rapicauda, one of the largest species of gekkonid lizards in the world, and to discover the relative utility of size, sex, and body mass of Thecadactylus rapicauda as predictive factors of the abundance of helminth parasites. We analyzed 40 individuals of T. rapicauda, of which 34 had parasites (85% of prevalence), with 269 specimens allocated to 10 species. Body size of the host showed a positive influence on the abundance of helminths. Host sex is another important factor related to the abundance of nematodes: females were usually heavily infected. We conclude that T. rapicauda has a high richness of the helminth species and that most of the species found infecting this host were nematodes with a direct life cycle. Additionally, we found new helminth species, which should be described formally in the future.

Helminths of lizards from the municipality of Aripuanã in the southern Amazon region of Brazil

Ninety-five specimens from 13 species of lizard collected during a herpetofaunal monitoring programme of the Faxinal II power plant, municipality of Aripuanã, state of Mato Grosso, Brazil (southern Amazon region) were examined for helminths. A total of 21 helminth species (16 Nematoda, 1 Cestoda and 4 Trematoda) were recovered, with an overall prevalence of 67.37%. Seventeen new host records and seven new locality records are reported. A low number of specialists and core helminth species were found. Lizard body size was positively correlated with both the total number of helminth species and individuals. Active foragers exhibited higher helminth diversity. However, sit-and-wait foragers, especially Plica plica, had similar diversity values as active foragers and harboured more helminth species. The degree of similarity in helminth fauna was higher among closely related host species.

The nematode community in the Atlantic rainforest lizard Enyalius perditus Jackson, from south-eastern Brazil

Studies focusing on communities of helminths from Brazilian lizards are increasing, but there are many blanks in the knowledge of parasitic fauna of wild fauna. This lack of knowledge hampers understanding of ecological and parasitological aspects of involved species. Moreover, the majority of research has focused on parasitic fauna of lizards from families Tropiduridae and Scincidae. Only a few studies have looked at lizards from the family Leiosauridae, including some species of Enyalius. This study presents data on the gastrointestinal parasite fauna of Enyalius perditus and their relationships with ecological aspects of hosts in a disturbed Atlantic rainforest area in the state of Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil. Two nematode species, Oswaldocruzia burseyi [(Molineidae) and Strongyluris oscari (Heterakidae) were found. Nematode species showed an aggregated distribution in this host population, with O. burseyi being more aggregated than S. oscari. The present study extends the range of occurrence of O. burseyi to the Brazilian continental area.