Polymorphus fulicai

Description (Table 1). Host. Black Coot, Fulica atra Linnaeus, 1758 (Aves: Rallidae) Site of infection. Intestine

Diagnosis. Body in both sexes spinose, thick, fusiform. Proboscis globular, double walled. Neck long cylindrical. Proboscis receptacle cylindrical, double walled. Body of female worms filled with ovarian balls and eggs scattered in entire body up to proboscis receptacle. Second quarter of trunk in both sexes covered with small spines, distributed equally on ventral and dorsal surfaces in 46 longitudinal rows of 16 spines each; spines 0.03 mm long. Proboscis armed with 19 longitudinal rows of 8 hooks each. Basal hooks and apical hooks smaller in size than middle ones. Cement glands four, cylindrical. The new species differs from its congeners on the basis of distribution of cuticular spines, number of longitudinal rows of hooks, number of hooks per row, size of hooks, smaller lemnisci and oblique testes.

Remarks. Lühe (1911) proposed Polymorphus to accommodate acanthocephalans from birds, establishing the type species as P. boschadis (Schrank, 1788) Railliet, 1919, later recognized as a synonym of P. minutus (Goeze, 1782) Lühe, 1911. Several members of genus have been reported from birds, including the following species: P. trochus Van Cleave, 1945; differs from the present species in having a larger body in both sexes, a pear shaped proboscis of females much inflated at the base, a swollen trunk, the number of longitudinal rows of hooks, the number of hooks per row and larger eggs. Male: Female: Entire worm 2.81 – 2.95 Entire worm 2.53 – 2.85 Trunk 2.17 – 2.21 x 0.56 – 0.62 Trunk 1.95 – 2.21 x 0.56 – 0.68 Proboscis 0.26 – 0.30 x 0.16 – 0.18 Proboscis 0.24 x 0.15 – 0.16 Neck 0.38 – 0.43 x 0.32 – 0.33 Neck 0.33 – 0.40 x 0.30 – 0.32 Proboscis receptacle 0.43 – 0.57 x 0.12 – 0.16 Proboscis receptacle 0.32 – 0.50 x 0.15 – 0.17 Lemnisci 0.50 – 0.60 Lemnisci 0.40 – 0.60 Spinose area of trunk 0.56 – 0.58 x 0.55 – 0.56 Spinose area of trunk 0.57 – 0.58 x 0.54 – 0.68 Anterior testis 0.22 – 0.27 x 0.13 – 0.18 Ovarian balls 0.06 – 0.11 x 0.04 – 0.07 Posterior testis 0.21 – 0.26 x 0.15 – 0.18 Eggs 34 – 71 x 10 – 15

Etymology. Specific name refers to generic name of the host.