Family PARUTERINIDAE Fuhrmann, 1907

Museums

Regional Maps

Introduction

The family Paruterinidae Fuhrmann, 1907 was originally established as a subfamily of the Dilepididae to contain those genera in which the uterus was transformed into a paruterine organ. After several attempts it was elevated to family status (Georgiev & Kornyushin 1994). It is still considered a heterogeneous and polyphyletic group, as the parauterine organ takes such diverse forms, but provides a convenient character for identification.

The family is parasitic in birds although intermediate hosts include arthropods and mammals. Five genera are currently known from Australia, one of which is endemic. The records of the genus Cladotaenia Cohn, 1901 are currently based upon cestodes found in an Australian bird that died in the Calcutta zoo. However, Mawson et al. (1986) recorded the genus in Australia, although the species present here have not yet been determined.

The taxonomic arrangement used here is that of Georgiev & Kornyushin (1994).

General References

Georgiev, B.B. & Kornyushin, V. V. 1994. Family Paruterinidae Fuhrmann, 1907 (sensu lato). pp. 559-584 in Khalil, L.F., Jones, A. & Bray, R.A. (eds). Keys to the Cestode Parasites of Vertebrates. Wallingford, UK : Commonwealth Agriculture Bureaux International 751 pp.

Mawson, P.M., Angel, L.M. & Edmonds, S.J. 1986. A checklist of helminths from Australian birds. Records of the South Australian Museum (Adelaide) 19: 219-325

History of changes