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Nematodes from the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii (Boitard)), with the description of Sarcophiloxyuris longus n. gen. and n. sp. (Oxyuridae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 July 2021

D.P. Barton Open the ORCID record for D.P. Barton [Opens in a new window] ,
L. Smales Open the ORCID record for L. Smales [Opens in a new window] ,
V. Lee ,
X. Zhu Open the ORCID record for X. Zhu [Opens in a new window]  and
S. Shamsi Open the ORCID record for S. Shamsi [Opens in a new window]
D.P. Barton*
Affiliation:
School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia
L. Smales
Affiliation:
Parasitology Section, South Australian Museum, Adelaide, South Australia, 5000, Australia
V. Lee
Affiliation:
School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia
X. Zhu
Affiliation:
School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia Wagga Wagga Agricultural Institute, New South Wales Department of Primary Industries, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia
S. Shamsi
Affiliation:
School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, 2678, NSW, Australia
*
Author for correspondence: D.P. Barton, E-mail: dibarton@csu.edu.au
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Abstract

The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii (Boitard)) is an endangered carnivorous marsupial, limited to the islands of Tasmania in southern Australia. The parasites of the Tasmanian devil are understudied. This study aimed to increase the knowledge of the nematode fauna of Tasmanian devils. Ten Tasmanian devils were examined for parasites from northern and southern Tasmania. Nematodes that were collected were morphologically characterized as two separate species. Molecular sequencing was undertaken to verify the identity of these species. A new genus and species of oxyurid nematode was collected from a single Tasmanian devil from the northern part of Tasmania. The nematode is differentiated from oxyurids described from other Australian amphibians, reptiles and marsupials by the characters of the male posterior end – that is, in having three pairs of caudal papillae, two pairs peri-cloacal, one large pair post-cloacal, a long tapering tail, a stout spicule and a gubernaculum and accessory piece, as well as its much larger overall size. Molecular sequencing was unsuccessful. The remaining nematodes collected from the Tasmanian devil in this study were all identified as Baylisascaris tasmaniensis Sprent, 1970, through morphology and molecular sequencing. This paper presents the first description of a new genus and species of oxyurid nematode from the Tasmanian devil, Sarcophiloxyuris longus n. gen., n. sp. The need to undertake more sampling of the parasites of endangered hosts, such as the Tasmanian devil, to assist with a better understanding of their conservation management, is discussed.

Keywords

Endangered speciesparasite–host dynamicsbiodiversityconservation
Type
Research Paper
Information
Journal of Helminthology , Volume 95 , 2021 , e38
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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