Caryophyllidean tapeworms (Cestoda), Nearctic parasites of fish in Mexico, including description of a new species of Isoglaridacris and the first report of Khawia japonensis, an invasive parasite of common carp (Cyprinus carpio)

The first survey of caryophyllidean tapeworms parasitising catostomid and cyprinid fish in Mexico is provided, including new host and geographical records. Isoglaridacris brevicollis n. sp. is described from the Nazas sucker, Catostomus nebuliferus Garman (type host), in Durango, C. bernardini Girard in Sonora, and Moxostoma austrinum Bean (Cypriniformes: Catostomidae) in Jalisco. The new species differs from congeners mainly in the shape of the scolex, which is rounded, and by the absence of a defined neck (distinct, often long in other congeners). Pseudoglaridacris confusa found in Ictiobus meridionalis (also a member of the family Catostomidae) from Oaxaca and Veracruz represents the southern-most report of species of this Nearctic genus. Three morphotypes of the holarctic Archigetes Leuckart, 1878 were found in two leuciscid fishes (Notropis caliensis and N. nazas) and in silverside Chirostoma sp. (Atherinidae). It is the first record of any caryophyllidean in atheriniform fish. The first record of Khawia japonensis (Yamaguti, 1934) (syn. K. iowensis Calentine et Ulmer, 1961), a parasite of common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.), in Mexico represents another evidence of its invasive potential. The caryophyllidean fauna of Mexican freshwater fish is depauperate compared to that in the United States and Canada, which seems to be related to a much lower number of species of suckers (Catostomidae) occurring in Mexico, possibly also to the lower number of fish in the population.

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We present the first systematic survey of caryophyllidean tapeworms (Cestoda) in Mexico.

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A new species of Isoglaridacris is described from endemic suckers (Catostomidae).

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This is the first report of any caryophyllidean from atheriniform fish.

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Khawia japonensis, a parasite of common carp, is reported as an invasive species in Mexico.

Update on the distribution of the co-invasive Schyzocotyle acheilognathi (= Bothriocephalus acheilognathi), the Asian fish tapeworm, in freshwater fishes of Mexico

The Asian fish tapeworm, Schyzocotyle acheilognathi (syn. Bothriocephalus acheilognathi) represents a threat to freshwater fish, mainly cyprinids, across the globe. This tapeworm possesses an extraordinary ability to adapt to different environmental conditions and, because of that, from its natural geographical origin in mainland Asia, it has colonized every continent except Antarctica. It is thought that this pathogenic tapeworm was first co-introduced into Mexico in 1965 from China, with the grass carp Ctenopharyngodon idella, although the first formal record of its presence was published in 1981. Over the past 35 years, the Asian fish tapeworm has invaded about 22% of the freshwater fish in Mexico. Because fish communities in Mexico are characterized by high species richness and levels of endemism, S. acheilognathi is considered as a co-introduced and co-invasive species. In this review, we update the geographic distribution and host spectrum of the Asian fish tapeworm in Mexico. Up until December 2016, the tapeworm had been recorded in 110 freshwater fish species (96 native and 14 introduced), included in 51 genera, 11 families and 4 orders; it was also widely distributed in all types of aquatic environments, and has been found in 214 localities. We present novel data from a survey aimed at establishing the distribution pattern of the tapeworm in native freshwater fishes of two rivers in north-central Mexico, and the genetic variation among individuals of this co-invasive species collected from different host species and localities. We discuss briefly the factors that have determined the remarkable invasive success of this parasite in freshwater systems in Mexico.

Molecular, Morphological, and Ecological Data of Saccocoelioides Szidat, 1954 (Digenea: Haploporidae) from Middle America Supported the Reallocation from Culuwiya cichlidorum to Saccocoelioides

This study investigates the systematic position of some species of the genus Saccocoelioides Szidat, 1954, and the species Culuwiya cichlidorum Aguirre-Macedo and Scholz, 2005 , from North and Middle America using new morphological data and partial sequences of 2 nuclear genes, the large subunit and the internal transcribed spacer 2 from ribosomal DNA. In total 74 specimens representing 4 species of Saccocoelioides (41 of Saccocoelioides sogandaresi, 3 of Saccocoelioides chauhani, 6 of Saccocoelioides lamothei, and 12 of Saccocoelioides olmecae) plus 12 specimens of Culuwiya cichlidorum were analyzed. The phylogenetic analyses inferred with maximum likelihood method and Bayesian inference showed that the 4 species of Saccocoelioides formed a clade divided into 4 subclades representing each species. In addition, 7 specimens sequenced from the type host and locality of Culuwiya cichlidorum were nested in 2 clades: the first clade with specimens of C. cichlidorum from Costa Rica, and the second clade with specimens of S. sogandaresi from Mexico, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Our analyses suggest that C. cichlidorum should be reallocated into Saccocoelioides, as was originally designated Saccocoelioides cichlidorum n. comb., is restricted to Nicaragua and Costa Rica and associated with cichlid fishes. In contrast, the specimens identified previously as Culuwiya cichlidorum from the coast of Gulf of Mexico by Aguirre-Macedo and Scholz belong to S. sogandaresi, which has a wide distribution that extends from Galveston Bay (U.S.A.) in Gulf of Mexico to Atlantic and Pacific slopes associated with poeciliid and cichlid fishes. New morphological data derived from scanning electron microscopy photographs of the body surface show a characteristic pattern of spination that is useful to distinguish between S. cichlidorum n. comb. and S. sogandaresi.

A new species of Wallinia Pearse, 1920 (Digenea: Allocreadiidae) in Astyanax mexicanus (Characidae) from Mexico revealed by morphology and sequences of the 28S ribosomal RNA gene

Wallinia mexicana sp. n. is described from the Mexican tetra, Astyanax mexicanus (De Filippi) (Characidae Weitzman), from two localities in northern Mexico. The new species can be distinguished from the two congeneric species, described from small-bodied characids in South and Central America, mainly by the posterior extent of the vitelline follicles (halfway between the posterior testis and the end of the caeca), by having a larger oesophagus, testes that are always oblique, and eye-spot remnants. The distinct status of the new species was confirmed by molecular data (28S rRNA gene sequences). Phylogenetic analysis suggests the new species is the sister species of W. chavarriae Choudhury, Hartvigsen et Brooks, 2002 described from characids in northwestern Costa Rica. Additionally, genetic divergence between these congeners reached 3.3%, a value higher than that observed for closely related species pairs of allocreadiids for that molecular marker. Based on these new findings, recently published records of this new species as Magnivitellinum simplex Kloss, 1966 and Creptotrematina aguirrepequenoi Jiménez-Guzmán, 1973 in Astyanax mexicanus from Durango and San Luis Potosi states, respectively, are corrected.

Using mitochondrial and ribosomal DNA sequences to test the taxonomic validity of Clinostomum complanatum Rudolphi, 1814 in fish-eating birds and freshwater fishes in Mexico, with the description of a new species

The taxonomic history and species composition of the genus Clinostomum has been unstable. Two species, Clinostomum complanatum Rudolphi, 1814 and Clinostomum marginatum Rudolphi, 1819, have been particularly problematic and its validity has been disputed for nearly 200 years. In this paper, we have made use of an integrative taxonomy approach, and we used, in first instance, DNA sequences of two genes (cox1 and ITS) to test the validity of C. complanatum, a species apparently widely distributed in Mexico and to link the metacercariae and adult forms of the recognized species of Clinostomum. Combining molecular data with morphology, host association, and geographical distribution, we searched for the potential existence of undescribed species. A new species of Clinostomum is described based on adults found in the mouthy cavity of three species of fish-eating birds as well as in metacercariae found in freshwater and estuarine fishes. A few morphological characteristics distinguish the new species from other congeners even though reciprocal monophyly in a phylogenetic tree based on maximum-likelihood and Bayesian analysis, genetic divergence, and a multivariate analysis of variance and a principal component analysis of 18 morphometric traits for adults and metacercariae demonstrates the validity of the new species. Based on our results, it seems that C. complanatum is not currently distributed in Mexico, although this requires further verification with a more thoroughful sampling in other areas of the country, but it is plausible to support the hypothesis that C. marginatum is the American form, as previously suggested by other authors.