Pauciconfibula patagonensis sp. nov. (Monogenea: Microcotylidae) parasitizing the horsefish, Congiopodus peruvianus (Pisces: Congiopodidae), from the Patagonian Shelf, Argentina

Abstract

Pauciconfibula patagonensis sp. nov. (Monogenea: Microcotylidae), parasite of gill filaments of the horsefish, Congiopodus peruvianus (Congiopodidae) collected in the Patagonian Shelf, Argentina, is described and illustrated. The new species is characterized by having intestinal caeca not confluent and entering into the haptor, vitelline follicles extending from the genital pore to near the posterior portion of haptor, two parallel rows each comprised of 16-20 microcotylid clamps in the haptor, 25-43 testes and a fusiform egg with one very long tangled polar filament. P. patagonensis is the only member of the genus known to parasitize a scorpaeniform host and represents the first record of a representative of this genus in the southern Atlantic Ocean.