Abstract
A single male and several adult females of the pentastomid Leiperia cincinnalis were recovered from the trachea of five of six Nile crocodiles examined in 1995 and 1998. Infective larvae, pre-adult males and females, as well as mature males, occurred in clusters in the pulmonary artery but infective larvae and pre-adult females were also occasionally taken from the lungs. Irrespective of the developmental stage, the intensity of infection was 3, 6, 48, 72 and 79. Sixty-four percent of eggs recovered from the posterior part of the uterus of a patent L. cincinnalis female contained fully-developed primary larvae and these were used to infect 24 Mozambique bream Oreochromis mossambicus. Within a week of infection all the fish died and hatched primary larvae were recovered from the stomach and anterior part of the intestine. Eggs that had not hatched were found to be unsegmented. The total primary larval count in seven fish was 18, 12, 1, 25, 16, >40 and >50. Descriptions with detailed measurements are given of the females, the males, the eggs, the primary larvae and the infective larvae of L. cincinnalis.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Banaja, A.A., James, J.L. & Riley, J. (1975) An experimental investigation of a direct life-cycle in Reighardia sternae (Diesing, 1864), a pentastomid parasite of the herring gull (Larus argentatus). Parasitology, 71, 493–503.
Bosch, H. (1987) Vergleichende experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Biologie der Pentastomidengattungen Raillietiella (Cephalobaenida) und Elenia (Porocephalida) unter Berücksichtigung der Erforschungsgeschichte der Pentastomiden. PhD Thesis, Faculty of Biology, University of Hohenheim.
Eckert, R. (1993) Tierphysiologie. Stuttgart: Georg Thieme Verlag, 648–651.
Fain, A. (1961) Les Pentastomides de l'Afrique Centrale. Annales de Musée Royale de l'Afrique Centrale, Série 8, 92, 1–115.
Heymons, R. (1940) Beiträge zur Systematik der Pentastomiden. III. Pentastomiden mit spiralig gekrümmten Körperformen. Zeitschrift für Parasitenkunde, 2, 77–94.
Junker, K. (1996) Untersuchungen zur Biologie und Lebensweise der in Crocodilia parasitierenden Pentastomida in Südafrika. MSc Thesis, University Fridericiana of Karlsruhe.
Junker, K., Boomker, J. & Booyse, D.G. (1998a) Pentastomid infections in cichlid fishes in the Kruger National Park and the description of the infective larva of Subtriquetra rileyi n. sp. Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research, 65, 159–167.
Junker, K., Boomker, J. & Booyse, D.G. (1998b) Experimental studies on the life-cycle of Sebekia wedli (Pentastomida: Sebekidae). Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research, 65, 233–237.
Penn, G.H. (1942) The life history of Porocephalus crotali, a parasite of the Louisiana muskrat. Journal of Parasitology, 28, 277–283.
Riley, J. (1981) Some observations on the development of Porocephalus crotali (Pentastomida: Porocephalida) in the western diamondback rattlesnake (Crotalus atrox). International Journal for Parasitology, 11, 127–131.
Riley, J. (1986) The biology of pentastomids. Advances in Parasitology, 25, 45–128.
Riley, J. & Huchzermeyer, F.W. (1995) Description of four species of pentastomid parasites belonging to the genera Alofia Giglioli, 1922 and Sebekia Sambon, 1922, from a single Nile crocodile Crocodylus niloticus from Botswana. Systematic Parasitology, 31, 221–238.
Riley, J. & Huchzermeyer, F.W. (1996) A reassessment of the pentastomid genus Leiperia Sambon, 1922, with a description of a new species from both the Indopacific crocodile Crocodylus porosus and Johnston's crocodile C. johnsoni in Australia. Systematic Parasitology, 34, 53–66.
Riley, J. & Self, J.T. (1980) On the systematics and life-cycle of the pentastomid genus Kiricephalus Sambon, 1922 with descriptions of three new species. Systematic Parasitology, 1, 127–140.
Rodhain, J. & Vuylsteke, C. (1932) Contribution à l'étude des Porocéphales des Crocodiles Africains. Révue de Zoologie et de Botanique Africaines, 23, 1–11.
Salazar, N.P. (1965) Human pentastomiasis in the Philippines, with notes on a Taiwan species. Acta Medica Philippina, Series 2, 1, 157–162.
Sambon, L.W. (1922) A synopsis of the family Linguatulidae. Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, 25, 188–206; 391–428.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Junker, K., Boomker, J., Swanepoel, D. et al. Leiperia cincinnalis Sambon, 1922 (Pentastomida) from Nile crocodiles Crocodylus niloticus in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, with a description of the male. Syst Parasitol 47, 29–41 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006306507207
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006306507207