Flabelloskrjabinia Spasskii 1951

Flabelloskrjabinia Spasskii, 1951

(Fig. 10)

Diagnosis: Strobila long and wide. Scolex of average size or very large. Suckers directed anteriorly or anterolaterally. Neck (unsegmented region) absent. Proglottides craspedote, much wider than long. Genitalia single. Genital pores unilateral, positioned slightly posterior to middle of proglottis margin. Genital atrium strong, capable of forming prominent genital papilla. Genital ducts cross osmoregulatory canals dorsally. Internal and external seminal vesicles present. Cirrus sac long and slender, extending well beyond ventral longitudinal canal. Retractor muscle of cirrus sac present. Testes very numerous, arranged either in single transverse group in antiporal part of proglottis or antiporally and antero-porally to ovary; do not overlap antiporal ventral longitudinal canal. Ovary large, rounded, median, densely lobed. Vagina long, extending well beyond ventral longitudinal canal; enters genital atrium ventral or postero-ventral to cirrus sac. Early uterus transverse tube with or without sparse fenestrations, positioned anteriorly, not overlapping longitudinal osmoregulatory canals. Fully developed (pregravid) uterus arborescent, with separate anterior and posterior sacculi; transverse median trunk present. Pyriform apparatus present. Parasitic in perissodactyls (tapirs). Type species: F. tapirus (Chin, 1938) Spasskii, 1951 [syns. Anoplocephala tapirus Chin, 1938, Anoplocephaloides tapirus (Chin, 1938) Rausch, 1976, Paranoplocephala tapirus (Chin, 1938) Joyeux & Baer, 1961] from Tapirus sp.; holotype deposited at the Department of Biology, Lingnan University (accession number not specified). Other species: F. indicata (Sawada & Papasarathorn, 1966) Rausch, 1976 [syns. Paranoplocephala indicata Sawada & Papasarathorn, 1966, Anoplocephaloides indicata (Sawada & Papasarathorn, 1966) Haukisalmi, 2005].

FIGURE. 10. Flabelloskrjabinia indicata from Tapirus indicus (redrawn from Haukisalmi 2005). A. Scolex (scale-bar 1.0 mm). B. Mature proglottis (scale-bar 1.0 mm). C. Pregravid uterus (scale-bar 1.0 mm).

Remarks. Since its anterior early uterus does not extend across the ventral longitudinal canals, Flabelloskrjabinia resembles Leporidotaenia, G. floresbarroetae and Sciurotaenia. It can be differentiated from these taxa by its significantly larger body (Leporidotaenia, G. floresbarroetae), absence of a neck (Sciurotaenia), unilateral genital pores (Leporidotaenia, S. wigginsi), numerous testes (Leporidotaenia, G. floresbarroetae), presence of a cirrus retractor muscle (Sciurotaenia) and length of the vagina (Sciurotaenia) (see also Haukisalmi 2005).

Flabelloskrjabinia includes one species with antiporal and anterior testes and another with antiporal testes only; this difference is not, however, considered to be of high taxonomic value (see below). Flabelloskrjabinia tapirus inhabits the small intestine of its host; region not specified (Chin 1938).