Probolocoryphe uca Sarkisian

Hechinger, Ryan F., 2019, Guide to the trematodes (Platyhelminthes) that infect the California horn snail (Cerithideopsis californica: Potamididae: Gastropoda) as first intermediate host, Zootaxa 4711 (3), pp. 459-494 : 489

Probolocoryphe uca Sarkisian

(18. Pruc; Figs. 1 , 75–78 )

Diagnosis: Parthenitae. Colony comprised of inactive sporocysts, densely concentrated in snail gonad region, with dispersion into digestive gland and basal visceral mass. Sporocysts translucent golden to orangish; ~ 250– 600 µm long, spheroidal to oblong (length:width up to ~2:1).

Cercaria . Body translucent colorless; non-oculate; with oral sucker and no ventral sucker; with oral stylet, ~ 25 µm long, with distinctive dorsal flange; with a small bi-lobed excretory bladder at posterior-most edge of cercaria body; body ~ 175 µm long, ~equal in length to tail; tail simple.

Cercaria behavior: Fresh, emerged cercariae remain in water column, swim ~continuously, lashing tail back and forth.

Similar species: Pruc is most readily distinguished from Smmi [19] by the difference in stylet morphology and larger body size.

Remarks: The sporocysts and cercariae have not been formally described, but Garcia-Vedrenne et al. (submitted) provide measurements of sporocyst size for three colonies. Sarkisian (1957) described the metacercariae from fiddler crabs (Uca crenulata) infected with microphallid cercariae shed from C. californica .

This species likely corresponds to the “Xiphidiocercaria” of Maxon and Pequegnat (1949), the “large xiphidiocercaria” of Martin (1955), and to “Microphallid 1” of Martin (1972).

Mature, ripe colonies comprise ~41% the soft-tissue weight of an infected snail (summer-time estimate derived from information in [ Hechinger et al. 2009]).

Nadakal (1960b) presents information on the pigments of the sporocysts and cercariae of this species.

Figures

FIGURE 1. General characteristics of the parthenitae and cercariae of the trematodes infecting Cerithideopsis californica as first intermediate host. Species numbers and codes follow Table 1 and species accounts. Cercariae are all to scale, with additional magnified views of six small species (indicated by dashed lines). Note the oral stylets (presented in right lateral view) for Pruc and Smmi. Parthenitae are not to scale. Scale bars consistently indicate 100 µm.

FIGURES 75–78. Probolocoryphe uca (Pruc). 75, Overview of a colony in a freshly deshelled, infected horn snail in sea water. Arrow indicates the colony, which is localized in the gonadal region, with invasion of the digestive gland and basal visceral mass. Scale bar = 1 cm. Base photo credit: Todd Huspeni. 76, Sporocyst, live, with developing cercariae, under coverslip pressure. Scale bar = 100 µm. 77, Cercaria, live, under heavy coverslip pressure. Scale bar = 100 µm. 78, Close-up of cercaria anterior end, under heavy coverslip pressure, oral stylet pressed on its side to reveal the dorsal flange. Scale bar = 25.