A new species of Ascarophis (Nematoda, Cystidicolidae) from the stomach ofthe marine scorpaeniform fish Hoplichthys citrinus from a seamount off the Chesterfield Islands, NewCaledonia
A new species of parasitic nematode, Ascarophis (Similascarophis) richeri sp.nov. (Cystidicolidae), is described from the stomach of the marine scorpaeniform fish Hoplichthyscitrinus Gilbert (Hoplichthyidae) (prevalence 19%, intensity 1-8 nematodes per fish) collected inthe region of the Chesterfield Islands (Coral Sea, west of New Caledonia) in October 2005. The newspecies, studied using both light and scanning electron microscopy, is characterized mainly by thestructure of the mouth (highly reduced pseudolabia, high pseudolabial terminal projections, nosubmedian labia, well-developed, bilobed sublabia), bifurcate deirids, the length of the spicules(663-729 mu m and 105-108 mu m) and the presence of filaments on both egg poles (2-5 on each).Similascarophis Munoz, Gonzalez et George-Nascimento, 2004 is considered a subgenus of Ascarophisvan Beneden, 1871 to accommodate the species characterized by highly reduced pseudolabia. Presenceof the new species in fish from Seamount Nova (Lord Howe Rise) but not from the Chesterfield plateausuggests that it is endemic to this seamount, a case already encountered for many benthicinvertebrates.
Moravec, F　Justine, JL
Acad Sci Czech Republic, Ctr Biol, Inst Parasitol, CR-37005 Ceske Budejovice,Czech Republic; Inst Rech Pour Dev, Unite Syst Adaptat Evolut, Equipe Biogeog Marine Trop,UPMC,CNRS,MNHN,IRD, Noumea 98848, New Caledonia
Parasitic nematode　 Ascarophis　 Similascarophis　 marine fish　 Hoplichthys　Chesterfield Islands　 New Caledonia　 ATLANTIC PARASITE ENDEMISM
