Breinlia (Breinlia) beveridgei, Spratt, 2011

Spratt, David M., 2011, New records of filarioid nematodes (Nematoda: Filarioidea) parasitic in Australasian monotremes, marsupials and murids, with descriptions of nine new species 2860, Zootaxa 2860 (1), pp. 1-61 : 7

Breinlia (Breinlia) beveridgei sp. nov.

( Figs. 1–6 )

Type host. Macropus parryi Bennett (Marsupialia: Macropodidae ).

Site in host. Peritoneal cavity.

Material examined. Holotype ♂, from Macropus parryi, Townsville Crematorium , Queensland (19 0 15’S, 146 0 49’E), coll: I. Beveridge, 4.x.1978, AHC 45852; paratype ♂, AHC 45853.

Other material examined. QLD: 1♂ ( QM G232509 ), Inkerman Station (19 0 45’S, 147 0 29’E), 2.v.1978 .

Etymology. The species is named after Ian Beveridge who collected the specimens and wished me to say no more in his honour.

Differential diagnosis. Breinlia (B.) beveridgei from whiptail wallabies in north Queensland is most similar to B. (B.) melomyos and B. (B.) zyzomyos from murid hosts in the Kimberley region of Western Australia but is distinguished from each of them by the shorter males, particularly large ear–like cephalic papillae of the outer circle, longer glandular oesophagus, narrower gubernaculum appearing to surround the distal tip of the right spicule and the sparse and restricted distribution of the longitudinal refractile cuticular bosses in males. It is further distinguished from the former by the slightly longer left and right spicules and the longer lamina of the left spicule and from the latter by the shorter right spicule and considerably shorter tail. Females of the new species are unknown.

Description. General: Relatively short, narrow nematodes, anterior and posterior extremities not markedly attenuated. Oral opening and cephalic extremity not observed in apical view. Four pairs submedian papillae arranged in outer circle of 4 very large and inner circle of four much smaller papillae, former giving appearance of “ears”. Internolateral papillae and amphids not observed. Buccal capsule small, narrow, weakly sclerotised, with. minute, refractile, ring at its base. Oesophagus divided into thin muscular and thicker glandular regions. Intestine moderately broad. Cuticle with distinct transverse striations, fine, widely scattered, longitudinal, refractile cuticular bosses present only on posterior ventral surface of male extending anteriorly 2–3 mm from cloaca. Lateral cords with 3 columns of nuclei, a narrow, central column of widely–spaced, elliptical nuclei with prominent nucleoli and wider, peripheral columns of closely–spaced, elliptical nuclei with prominent nucleoli. Spicules unequal, dissimilar, heavily sclerotised. Gubernaculum present, surrounding distal extremity of right spicule. Lateral alae and caudal alae absent. Phasmids and deirids not observed.

Male: (Holotype measurements presented first in italics followed by paratype and additional specimen). BL 42.2, 34.5, 17.2 mm. MW 277, 308, 140 in mid–body. NR 220, 260, 210. EP observed in paratype only, 430. MO 311, 460, 401. GO 1220, 2190, 1378. Posterior end gently curved, not coiled helically. LS 395, 322, 436; Cal 156, 114, 177, Lam 114, 94, 94, Fil 125, 114, 165, not terminating in fine membranous sheath. RS 135, 150, 156, with spatulate distal extremity. Gub 35, 35, 33, surrounding distal extremity of right spicule. Cloacal papillae 10 in number generally with two pre–cloacal pairs and three post–clocal pairs. T 353, 447, 434, with two small subterminal latero-ventral papillae.

Female: Unknown.

Microfilaria: Unknown.

Distribution and host. Breinlia beveridgei is known only from two host individuals from northern Queensland although an additional 27 individuals of M. parryi have been examined ( Beveridge et al., 2010).

Remarks. Breinlia (B.) beveridgei from the whiptail wallby, Macropus parryi , is most similar to B. (B.) melomyos and B. (B.) zyzomyos from murid rodents in northwestern Western Australia and distinguished from them under the differential diagnosis provided. While only three specimens were available for study, two from the same host individual, there was a surprising variability in lengths of muscular and glandular oesophagus, length of tail and in lengths of the calomus and filament of the left spicule.

The new species brings to four the number of filarioids known from this host species, B. (B.) mundayi also from the peritoneal cavity, and B. (J.) annulipapillata and Pelecitus roemeri from subcutaneous connective tissues.

Figures

FIGURES 1–6. Breinlia (Breinlia) beveridgei sp. nov. 1, Cephalic end, lateral view. 2, Oesophago-intestinal junction, lateral view. 3, Anterior extremity, male, lateral view. 4, Right spicule and gubernaculum, lateroventral view. 5, Posterior end male, lateral view. 6, Left spicule, lateral view. Scale bars: Fig. 1 = 20 µm, Figs. 2–5 = 50 µm, Fig. 6 = 100 µm.