Redescriptions of the Nematodes Litomosoides patersoni (Mazza, 1928) (Onchocercidae) and Stilestrongylus stilesi Freitas, Lent, And Almeida, 1937 (Heligmonellidae) Parasites of Holochilus chacarius (Rodentia, Cricetidae) From Salta, Argentina

Abstract

Two nematode species are redescribed from the type host species Holochilus chacarius Thomas (Rodentia, Cricetidae, Sigmodontinae) and from the type locality of 1 of them, i.e., Ingenio San Martín de Tabacal, Salta Province, Argentina. Rodents were deposited at the Colección Mamíferos Lillo, Tucumán, Argentina. Litomosoides patersoni (Mazza, 1928) (Onchocercidae) possesses a buccal capsule with irregular external walls, a buccal cavity smooth, becoming thinner near the oral opening, a complete set of head papillae, 3-6 pairs of cloacal papillae, and the " sigmodontis " type of spicules. Filarioids were found in 3 of 17 examined hosts. Stilestrongylus stilesi Freitas, Lent, and Almeida, 1937 (Heligmonellidae), whose description was based on male specimens, was found in all 17 of the examined hosts. Here, we describe the female and the synlophe of both sexes. Females are characterized by a short uterus with less than 25 eggs, short ovejector, short and conical tail, and the posterior extremity strongly invaginated in a cuticular expansion usually harboring 1 to several eggs. The synlophe is characterized by 29-31 sub-equal cuticular ridges at the mid-body, with single (in males) or double (in females) axis of orientation of the ridges. The present work validates and enlarges the original descriptions of both species and assigns the specimens from L. patersoni, recovered from the type locality and the type host species, as neotypes.