Opalinidae in African Anura. III. Genus Cepedea

Abstract

During 1988 and 1989, 409 specimens of southern African Anura comprising 50 species in 9 families were checked for opalinids in the cloaca. Cepedea acuta n. sp. was found in six of 19 Tomopterna cryptotis and four of seven T. krugerensis (Ranidae); C. affinis (Nazaretskaja, 1922) in two of four Afrixalus aureus, two of four Hyperolius horstocki, 23 of 42 H. marmoratus, one of seven H. pusillus, two of six H. semidiscus, and eight of 12 H. tuberilinguis (Hyperoliidae); C. magna Metcalf, 1923 in one of 20 Bufo garmani, eight of 33 B. gutturalis and two of nine B. rangeri (all Bufonidae), one of two Heleophryne natalensis (juveniles) (Heleophrynidae), four of six Kassina maculata, three of seven K. senegalensis and two of six Semnodactylus wealii (all Hyperoliidae), three of five Phrynomerus bifasciatus (Microhylidae), three of 12 Phrynobatrachus natalensis, 11 of 19 Tomopterna cryptotis, 13 of 14 T. delalandii, one of seven T. krugerensis and one of six T. natalensis (all Ranidae), and four of five Chiromantis xerampelina (Rhacophoridae); Cepedea vanniekerkae n. sp. in one of 19 Tomopterna cryptotis. It is suggested that the Ranidae (in particular the genus Tomopterna) and the Hyperoliidae (in particular the genus Hyperolius) are among the major carriers of Cepedea in the Afrotropical Region.

A review of the classification and distribution of five opalinids from Africa and North America

“…According to the form of the fixed cells and their size, these opalinids can be assigned to the species C. afiitzis as redescribed by Delvinquier et al (1993), and this is corroborated by the hosts in which we found them. The criteria used to characterize C. africana (Tuzet and Zuber-Vogeli 1954), C. crispata (Boisson 1965), and C. boissoni (Tuzet and Knoepffler 1968) are not sufficiently distinct to separate these species from C. aflinis; these species must be considered junior synonyms of C. affinis.…”

“…Cepedea affinis (Nazaretskaja, 1922) Delvinquier, Markus, andPassmore, 1993 Metcalf (1923) recorded this species from Heterixalus (formerly Megalixalus) madagascariensis. Later in the monograph, Metcalf (1923) recorded it from Hyperolius marmoratus, probably from East Africa, although the text indicates West Africa, where this frog species is not found (see Frost 1985;Passmore and Carruthers 1979;Schigtz 1975).…”

“…Until recently (see Delvinquier et al 1993), most descriptions of this species have included the form of the cell, its length and width, and the host species, but the kinetome is not described with precision (Boisson 1965;Metcalf 1923;Tuzet and Knoepffler 1968;Tuzet and Zuber-Vogeli 1954). According to the form of the fixed cells and their size, these opalinids can be assigned to the species C. afiitzis as redescribed by Delvinquier et al (1993), and this is corroborated by the hosts in which we found them.…”

“…Affa'a (1992) has recently added to the usual distinctive features of opalinids the existence in the kinetome of Opalina of a conspicuous suture region that distinctly separates Opalina from Cepedea, whose kineties merely converge on the posterior end. The host species and its geographic location have also been used as taxonomic characters (Boisson 1959(Boisson , 1965Corliss 1989;Delvinquier 1987;Delvinquier et al 1991Delvinquier et al , 1993Lynn and Small 1985;Metcalf 1923Metcalf , 1940Patterson and Delvinquier 1990;Tuzet and Knoepffler 1968;Tuzet and Zuber-Vogeli 1954;Wessenberg 196 1, 1978). However, in the historical literature there is often uncertainty in the identification of hosts and in their geographic distribution (e.g., Hyperolius marmoratus; Boisson 1965)), at least with regard to African amphibians (J.L.…”

Low-level genetic diversity of opalinid morphotypes from the digestive tract of Hoplobatrachus rugulosus (Batrachia, Amphibia) in Thailand

“…In previous decades, extensive research around the globe led to the discovery and description of hundreds of opaline species, all of which are classified in five genera: Cepedea, Opalina, Protoopalina, Protozelleri ella, and Zelleriella (Delvinquier et al 1991a(Delvinquier et al , 1991b(Delvinquier et al , 1992(Delvinquier et al , 1995. The presence of only a few opalinid genera indicates that the level of morphological diversity at the genus level is low.…”