Hemiuroidean trematodes from freshwater Patagonian fishes: description of a new species, distribution and molecular phylogeny

A new trematode species, Derogenes lacustris Tsuchida, Flores, Viozzi, Rauque et Urabe n. sp. (Derogenidae: Derogeninae), from freshwater fishes is described using morphological and molecular approaches in Argentinean Patagonia. D. lacustris is the most common hemiuroidean species in the Limay River basin and parasitizes almost all the native and introduced Patagonian freshwater fish. This new species could be considered as the unique freshwater species in the genus Derogenes Nicoll, 1910. Another hemiuroidean species, Thometrema patagonica Szidat (Archiev Hydrobiol 51: 542-577, 1956) Lunaschi et Drago 2000 (Derogenidae: Halipeginae), is found from Percichthys trucha (Perciformes) in the Neuquen River basin. Its diagnosis and molecular data are provided by the present study. In the molecular analysis of the Patagonian hemiuroideans, T. patagonica composes a group with halipeginean species in the phylogenetic tree of 28S rDNA sequences, while D. lacustris is not included in the same group. D. lacustris also shows low intraspecific variation in COI sequences regardless of the localities or host species.

Automated summary

A new freshwater fish parasitic trematode species, Derogenes lacustris, was described in Argentinean Patagonia, while another species, Thometrema patagonica, was found in the Neuquen River basin. Molecular analysis showed differences in their phylogenetic positions.