Eimeria sagentae, Tokiwa & Chou & Kitazoe & Ito & Torimoto & Shoshi & Sanjoba & Yamamoto & Yoshimura, 2022

Tokiwa, Toshihiro, Chou, Shyun, Kitazoe, Hina, Ito, Keiko, Torimoto, Ryouta, Shoshi, Yuki, Sanjoba, Chizu, Yamamoto, Masami & Yoshimura, Hisashi, 2022, Three new species of Eimeria (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from the Amami rabbit, Pentalagus furnessi (Mammalia: Leporidae), International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife 18, pp. 194-200 : 198-199

3.4. Eimeria sagentae n. sp. ( Figs. 5 and 6c )

3.4.1. Description

Oocyst shape: ellipsoidal; number of walls: 2; wall thickness: 1.1 (0.6–1.5); wall characteristics: outer is rough, light yellowish, finely granular, and easily detached, inner is smooth and transparent; L × W: 20.9 × 14.5 (18.8–23.0 × 12.3–16.9); L/W ratio: 1.4 (1.3–1.6); M: present; M characteristics: in the outer layer of the wall, 3.9 (3.2–5.6) wide; OR and PG: both absent.

Sporocyst shape: elongate-ovoidal; L x W: 10.4 × 5.0 (8.7–11.7 × 4.3–5.9); L/W ratio: 2.1 (1.7–2.4); SB: present; SB characteristics: nipple-like; SSB and PSB: both absent; SR: present; SR characteristics: a compact mass of large granules or a few scattered granules between SZ; SZ: elongated with one end wider than the other, lying length-wide head-to-tail, and with a clear RB posterior to N.

3.4.2. Taxonomic summary

Type host: Mammalia ( Lagomorpha : Leporidae ), P. furnessi (Stone, 1900) , Amami rabbit.

Other hosts: None to date.

Type locality: Amami-Oshima and Tokunoshima Islands ,

198

Kagoshima, Japan.

Site of infection: Unknown. Samples were obtained from feces and intestinal contents.

Sporulation: Exogenous. The exact hours were unknown, but oocysts became fully sporulated within 5 days at 23–26 ◦ C.

Prevalence: 36.1% (13/36, 95% CI 22.4–52.5%) of the type host.

Prepatent and patent periods: Unknown.

Materials deposited: Photosyntype of sporulated oocysts was deposited in the Meguro Parasitological Museum, Meguro, Tokyo, Japan, under MPM Coll. No. 21859.

ZooBank LSID: The ZooBank LSID is 82404C1B-EC2A-4C53-90BD-876D1548687C.

Etymology: Specific epithet “ sagentae ” is adopted from the name of Mr. Sagenta Nagoya (1820–1881), the author of “Nanto-Zatsuwa,” an ethnography published in 1855 that describes the nature and culture of the Amami-Oshima Island; it is given as a noun in the genitive case, in accordance to Article 31.1. of the ICZN.

Remarks: Sporulated oocysts of E. sagentae resemble, in shape, the size, presence of two walls, and the lack of OR, of Eimeria audubonii [21.2 × 17.1 (15–25 × 13–20)], detected from Sylvilagus audubonii ( Duszynski and Marquardt, 1969) , and of Eimeria rowani [22.1 × 15.8 (18–31 × 12–18)], detected from Lepus americanus ( Samoil and Samuel, 1977) . However, E. rowani oocysts differ from those of E. sagentae by the absence of M.

Figures

Fig. 5. Nomarski interference contrast photographs of oocysts of Eimeria sagentae from the Amami rabbit stored in a potassium dichromate solution. M: micropyle; N: nucleus; OWo: outer layer of the wall; OWi: inner layer of the wall; RB: refractile body; SB: Stieda body; SO: sporont; SR: sporocyst residuum. Scale bars (all in the same scale) = 10 μm.

Fig. 6. Line drawings of the Eimeria species detected in the Amami rabbit. (a) Eimeria furnessi. (b) Eimeria hilleri. (c) Eimeria sagentae. Scale bar = 10 μ