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Life History of Alaria marcianae (La Rue, 1917) Walton, 1949 (Trematoda: Diplostomatidae)

1968; American Society of Parasitologists; Volume: 54; Issue: 2 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2307/3276944

1937-2345

Allen D. Johnson,

Coccidia and coccidiosis research

The experimental life cycle of Alaria (A.) marcianae (La Rue, 1917) Walton, 1949, involves planorbid snails, Helisoma trivolvis and H. campanulatum, as first intermediate hosts; tadpoles of the leopard frog, Rana pipiens, as second intermediate hosts; mice, rats, and chicks as paratenic hosts; and the domestic cat as definitive host. The life cycle is similar to known cycles in the subgenus Alaria, where avian and mammalian intermediate hosts of the mesocercariae serve as paratenic hosts; but it differs from the only known cycle in the subgenus Paralaria, where the mesocercariae develop into metacercariae in avian and mammalian intermediate hosts. This difference in mesocercarial behavior represents a distinct biological difference between members of the two subgenera and is an additional subgeneric character. Alaria (A.) minnesotae Chandler, 1954, is a synonym of A. (A.) marcianae (new synonymy). Six Alaria spp. belonging to the subgenus Alaria Schrank, 1788, have been described from indigenous North American carnivores: A. americana Hall and Wigdor, 1918; A. arisaemoides Augustine and Uribe, 1927; A. oregonensis La Rue and Barone, 1927; A. canis La Rue and Fallis, 1934; A. minnesotae Chandler, 1954; and A. marcianae (La Rue, 1917) Walton, 1949. Of the first five species, Dubois (1963) considered only A. americana and A. arisaemoides valid. Alaria marcianae, the subject of this study, was not included in his revision. From 1960 to 1964, the writer collected adults of an Alaria (A.) sp. from several different carnivore hosts in Minnesota. Additional specimens collected during 1937 and 1938 were available for study. Morphological studies were made of these worms, and the complete life history was studied in experimental hosts beginning with eggs. These parasites were then identified as A. marcianae.