Description, biology and molecular characterisation of Serpentirhabdias moi n. sp. (Nematoda: Rhabdiasidae) from Chironius exoletus (Serpentes: Colubridae) in Brazil.

ABSTRACT

A new species of the genus Serpentirhabdias Tkach, Kuzmin et Snyder, 2014, S. moi n. sp., is described from a colubroid snake Chironius exoletus from Caxiuanã National Forest, State of Pará, Brazil. The species is characterised by having a triangular oral opening, absence of the buccal capsule, presence of six minute onchia in the oesophastome, and excretory glands of approximately the same length as the oesophagus. These qualitative morphological characters, as well as some measurements, differentiate the new species from other Neotropical and Nearctic Serpentirhabdias spp. The morphological description of parasitic adults of S. moi n. sp. is complemented by the description of free-living stages including males, females, and infective larvae. Comparative analysis of partial sequences of cox1 and 12S mitochondrial genes strongly supported the status of S. moi n. sp. as a new species. Molecular phylogeny based on sequences of the nuclear DNA region spanning the 3' end of the 18S nuclear rRNA gene, ITS region (ITS1 + 5.8S + ITS2) and 5' end of the 28S gene supported monophyly of all rhabdiasid genera included in the analysis and placed the new species into the Serpentirhabdias clade as sister taxon to S. fuscovenosa.