Family ANOPLOCEPHALIDAE Cholodkovsky, 1902

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Introduction

The Anoplocephalidae are characterised by the absence of a rostellum, or apical organ of attachment. However, in many cyclophyllideans, such rostella can be lost secondarily such that the Anoplocephalidae is unlikely to be monophyletic. Both morphological and life cycle data suggest that the Linstowiinae and Inermicapsiferinae López-Neyra, 1943 are not closely related to the Anoplocephalinae, while the Thysanosomatinae Skryabin, 1933 may be derived from the Anoplocephalinae (Beveridge 1994). A cladistic analysis of the cyclophyllidean families and subfamilies aligned the Linstowiinae with the Inermicapsiferinae and the Thysanosomatinae with the Anoplocephalinae (Hoberg et al. 1999), supporting in part the lack of monophyly of the family. The family is nevertheless a convenient phenetic assemblage and the lack of a rostellum is a character that facilitates recognition. The Inermicapsiferinae, parasitic primarily in hyracoids in Africa and thought to be more closely related to the Davaineidae due to the existence of complex egg capsules, have not been found in Australia (Beveridge 1994).

Anoplocephalinae. The sub-family Anoplocephalinae is characterised by the presence of a persistent, usually transverse uterus, an egg containing an elongate envelope surrounding the embryo, termed a pyriform apparatus, and the intermediate hosts in all known life cycles are oribatid mites. Anoplocephaline cestodes occur primarily in herbivorous mammals which ingest the infected mites accidentally while grazing. The sub-family has a cosmopolitan distribution occurring commonly in equids, ruminants, rodents, lagomorphs and phalangeroid marsupials as well as in birds (often parrots), dermopterans and primates, including man (Beveridge 1994).

The subfamily is well represented in the Australian cestode fauna with 11 genera. The largest genera, Bertiella Stiles & Hassall, 1902 and Progamotaenia Nybelin, 1917, occur in phalangeroid and phascolarctoid marsupials (possums, kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, koalas) as do also 3 smaller genera, Phascolocestus Beveridge, 2013 (formerly included in Paramoniezia Maplestone & Southwell, 1923), Phascolotaenia Beveridge, 1976 and Triplotaenia Boas, 1902. Two other genera, Paronia Diamare, 1900 and Hemiparonia Baer, 1925, are found in parrots. Killigrewia Meggitt, 1927, found in pigeons, is probably introduced.

The remaining genera that occur in mammals are in domestic species and are considered to be recent introductions. Moniezia Blanchard, 1891 in ruminants and Anoplocephala Blanchard, 1848 in horses are common and significant veterinary parasites (Mackerras 1958), while Equinia Haukisalmi, 2009 (formerly included in Anoplocephaloides Baer, 1923), from horses, appears to be rare in Australia (Mackerras 1958).

Linstowiinae. The sub-family Linstowiinae is characterised by a uterus which disintegrates during its development to form capsules around individual eggs. A pyriform apparatus is absent and the intermediate hosts are coleopterans (Beveridge 1994). The group was recognised as a family by Spasskii (1951). It occurs widely in insectivorous mammals and reptiles. The taxonomy at the generic level is controversial, the most recent revision being that of Beveridge (1994) which is followed here.

The Australian linstowiine fauna is limited, but of considerable biological interest. The genera Linstowia Zschokke, 1899 and Echidnotaenia Beveridge, 1980 are endemic, occurring primarily in the echidna, and with one species known from bandicoots. Paralinstowia Baer, 1927 is represented by a single species in bandicoots, the remaining species of the genus occurring in South American didelphid marsupials (Beveridge & Spratt 1996). The other two genera in the Australian fauna, Mathevotaenia Akhumian, 1946 and Oochoristica Lühe, 1898, are cosmopolitan.

Thysanosomatinae. The subfamily Thysanosomatinae is characterised by the development of paruterine organs and the movement of eggs from the true uterus to the paruterine organ. A pyriform apparatus is absent and the intermediate hosts are psocopterous insects. All thysanosomatines are parasites of ruminants (Beveridge 1994). A single species occurs in Australian cattle (Mackerras 1958) and presumably was introduced. The Inermicapsiferinae, thought to be more closely related to the Davaineidae due to the existence of complex egg capsules, are parasitic primarily in hyracoids in Africa and have not been found in Australia (Beveridge 1994).

General References

Beveridge, I. 1994. Family Anoplocephalidae Cholodkovsky, 1902. pp. 315-366 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.

Beveridge, I. & Spratt, D.M. 1996. The helminth fauna of Australasian marsupials: origins and evolutionary biology. Advances in Parasitology 37: 135-254

Hoberg, E.P., Jones, A. & Bray, R.A. 1999. Phylogenetic analysis among the families of the Cyclophyllidea (Eucestoda) based on comparative morphology, with new hypotheses for co-evolution in vertebrates. Systematic Parasitology 42: 51-73

Mackerras, M.J. 1958. Catalogue of Australian mammals and their recorded internal parasites. Part I. Monotremes and marsupials. Part II. Eutheria. Part III. Introduced herbivora and the domestic pig. Part IV. Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales 83: 101-160

Spasskii, A.A 1951. [Essentials of Cestodology. Vol. I. Anoplocephalate tapeworms of wild and domestic animals]. In, Skryabin, K.I. (ed.). Essentials of Cestodology. Moskva : Akademia NAUK, SSR Vol. 1 730 pp.

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