Cercaria vaullegeardi Pelseneer, 1906 (Digenea: Hemiuridae); the daughter sporocyst and emergence of the cercaria

Abstract

SUMMARYThe daughter sporocyst of Cercaria vaullegeardi has hitherto been regarded as occurring within the haemocoel of the digestive gland of Gibbula umbilicalis. A re-examination has shown that an important part of the sporocyst, previously overlooked, extends from the digestive gland, through the afferent renal vein, the right kidney haemocoel and the transverse pallial vessel into the blood channel within a gill filament, thus providing a means of exit from the host directly into the mantle cavity. The sporocyst is described at light and electron microscope levels, and the emergence of the cystophorous cercariae is discussed.