Host specificity
Some aspidogastreans have been recorded from few host species, but
most have a low degree of host specificity, i.e., they infect a wide
range of host species. Thus, Aspidogaster conchicola
infects many species of freshwater bivalves belonging to several families,
as well as snails, many species of freshwater fishes of several families,
and freshwater tortoises (references in Rohde, 1972).
Survival outside the host
Digenean trematodes have been cultured in various, complex, media.
However, their parasitic stages die soon in water. In contrast, several
aspidogastrean species were shown to survive in simple media for long
periods. For example, A. conchicola survived in water
for a fortnight, and in a mixture of water and saline solution for up
to five weeks. L. manteri from fish could be kept alive
for up to 13 days in dilute sea water (1:5) in which they laid eggs
containing larvae infective to snails (references in Rohde, 1972).
References
Rohde, K. (1972). The Aspidogastrea, especially Multicotyle purvisi Dawes, 1941. Advances in Parasitology 10, 77 - 151.
Rohde, K. (1973). Structure and development of Lobatostoma manteri sp. nov. (Trematoda: Aspidogastrea) from the Great Barrier Reef, Australia. Parasitology 66, 63-83.
About This Page
Klaus Rohde
University of New England, Armidale, New South Wales, Australia
Page copyright © 1998 Klaus Rohde
Page: Tree of Life
Host Specificity and Survival Outside the Host
Authored by
Klaus Rohde.
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