New data on the catenotaeniid cestode(Mikhail and Fahmy, 1968) parasitizing Fat sand rats,(Muridae: Gerbillinae), in Tunisia.

Abstract

The cestode(Cyclophyllidea: Catenotaeniidae: Skrjabinotaeniinae) was found parasitizing fat sand rats () in the south of Tunisia. The species was found previously infrom Egypt and infrom Morocco. The present finding constitutes the first record of the species in Tunisia. In the present study,was morphologically characterized using light microscopy and compared to previous records of the species. The main differentiating morphological features ofwith respect to other skrjabinotaenines of North African Gerbillinae murids are, in particular, the shape of strobila, size of suckers, number of testes, absence of an antero-poral ovarian lobe, length of the central uterine stem, and number of primary uterine branches. Negative density-dependent growth (crowding effect) has also been reported. Molecular analysis based on 28S rDNA was performed forand forThus, both species are grouped in a clade with other species of the subfamily Skrjabinotaeniinae and are clearly separated from the clade that includes species of the subfamily Catenotaeniinae. The molecular study confirmed the previously postulated synonymy ofwith