Notocotylus primulus n. sp. (Trematoda: Notocotylidae) from the crested duck Lophonetta specularioides (Aves, Anatidae) from Patagonian coast, southwestern Atlantic Ocean

Abstract

Species in the genus Notocotylus (Trematoda, Notocotylidae) are cosmopolitan parasites of mainly aquatic birds and, to a lesser extent, mammals. In this paper we describe Notocotylus primulus n. sp. parasitizing the Crested Duck, Lophonetta specularioides, from the Patagonian coast, southwestern Atlantic Ocean, based on morphological and molecular data. The new species could be distinguished from its congeners by the combination of several features; among them, the position of the genital pore that is prebifurcal and located close to the posterior margin of the oral sucker, a greater number of both ventral papillae and uterine loops, and a large cirrus sac. Molecular results of the ITS2 sequence support the location of this new species in the genus Notocotylus due to a close relationship with Notocotylus malhamensis (the lower genetic distance of the ITS2 sequences).