New records of leeches of the genus Limnatis (Hirudinea, Praobdellidae) from the South Caucasus and Central Asia: phylogenetic relationships of Eurasian and African populations

Abstract

Leeches of the genus Limnatis Moquin–Tandon, 1827 infest mucous membranes of various mammals, including humans and domestic ungulates. The type species of the genus L. nilotica (Savigny, 1822) was initially thought to occur throughout the Western Palaearctic, from North Africa to the Middle East and Central Asia. It was later found that L. paluda (Tennent, 1859) is a widespread Western Asian species. However, the South Caucasus and vast areas of Central Asia have not been explored sufficiently in terms of leeches of the genus Limnatis. We recorded L. paluda from Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan for the first time. We also carried out the first molecular characterisation of L. nilotica herein. We found a deep genetic differentiation (8 %) between the Western Asian L. paluda and North African (Moroccan) L. nilotica based on their COI sequences. This finding corroborates a previous morphology–based hypothesis on their separate species assignments. The low genetic diversity of L. paluda is explained by the recent colonisation of arid landscapes of Western Asia.

NEW RECORD OF LEECH Limnatis paluda (Hirudinida: Praobdellidae) FROM FERGANA VALLEY: ECOLOGICAL FEATURES AND COMPARISON WITH OTHER REGIONS

“…Likewise, it was also observed that it was larger than the L. paluda species determined from Kazakhstan [15] and other regions in Central Asia [6, 16, and 17]. While the samples of L. paluda determined in Ceylon (Sri Lanka), India, and Saudi Arabia region [11 and 24] were smaller than the samples in our study, it was observed that the species determined from Iran [19] were almost similar in size. It should be noted that the size of leeches increases after feeding, but it is not a mistake to conclude based on the materials.…”

“…The similarities and differences of L. paluda recorded from various parts of the world were analyzed. Our study determined that L. paluda, which we determined as the first record from the Fergana Valley region of Uzbekistan, has a longer and wider structure than the leeches from the Samarkand region of Uzbekistan [19]. Likewise, it was also observed that it was larger than the L. paluda species determined from Kazakhstan [15] and other regions in Central Asia [6, 16, and 17].…”

“…On the other hand, Turkistan and Turkmenistan samples were defined to be blue-purple [6 and 17]. Our study determined that the colors of the L. paluda samples collected from the Fergana Valley region of Uzbekistan and the samples collected from the Samarkand region [19] were almost similar. Differences in coloration are likely to be shaped by the genetics of leeches and environmental factors in their habitat.…”