Helminth fauna of Leptodactylus syphax (Anura: Leptodactylidae) from Caatinga biome, northeastern Brazil.

Aline Gouveia De Souza Lins,Drausio Honorio Morais,Aline Aguiar,Robson Waldemar Ávila,Reinaldo José Da Silva,Lidiane Aparecida Firmino Da Silva

doi:10.1590/s1984-29612017013

Abstract

Leptodactylus syphax is distributed in central, southeastern and northeastern Brazil, eastern Bolivia and southern Paraguay, occupying open areas and rock outcrops, in rock cavities and termite burrows. We collected 21 frogs from the Caatinga region of the state of Ceará, northeastern Brazil, and 7,021 helminths were recovered from 18 of these hosts (overall prevalence = 85.7%). Six helminth taxa were recovered, as follows: Aplectana membranosa (n = 3,756); Schrankiana formosula (n = 3,176); larvae of Physaloptera sp. (n = 43); unidentified nematode larvae (n = 7); digenean metacercariae of Lophosicyadiplostomum sp. (n = 2); and cystacanths of Acanthocephala (n = 37). The similarity of helminth composition between L. syphax from the Caatinga and other species of the L. fuscus group showed that some anurans were clustered according to parasite species and others according to geographic locality. This study presents new helminth records for the Neotropical region, thus helping in understanding the pattern of species distribution, and it increases the knowledge of parasites associated with amphibians.

Highlights

Knowledge about biological diversity and its distribution is of such importance that it should be considered before any further study
The similarity of helminth composition between L. syphax from the Caatinga and other species of the L. fuscus group showed that some anurans were clustered according to parasite species and others according to geographic locality
Helminths associated with Leptodactylus syphax from the Caatinga

Summary

Introduction

Knowledge about biological diversity and its distribution is of such importance that it should be considered before any further study. In the Caatinga biome, located in northeastern Brazil, there are approximately 53 anuran species, and most of them have an unknown helminth fauna (ALBUQUERQUE et al, 2012; CAMPIÃO et al, 2014). One of these species is Leptodactylus syphax (Bokermann, 1969), which is distributed across central, southeastern and northeastern Brazil, eastern Bolivia and southern Paraguay, occupying open areas and rocky outcrops, in rock or termite cavities. There is only one record of a helminth parasite associated with L. syphax: the nematode Aplectana sp., which was reported from the state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil (CAMPIÃO et al, 2014)

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Results

Conclusion