Abstract
Fecal samples from 12 Pipistrellus kuhlii captured at Shagrah, Saudi Arabia, were examined for coccidia and three (25%) found to harbor a undescribed eimerian, herein described as Eimeria pipistrellus n. sp. Sporulated oocysts were subspherical, 24.8×23.2 (22-27×20-25) µm, with a bilayered and smooth wall. The micropyle was absent, but a large oocyst residuum and a single polar granule were present. Sporocysts were ovoid, 11.6×8.3 (10.5-13×7.5-9) µm, with a prominent Stieda body, but without a substiedal body; sporozoites lay head to tail in sporocysts and contained one large posterior refractile body. Eimeria pipistrellus n. sp. is the 3rd species of the genus Eimeria found from bats of the genus Pipistrellus.
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Key words: Eimeria pipistrellus, Pipistrellus kuhlii, Chiroptera, bats
INTRODUCTION
No Eimeria species has been described from Pipistrellus kuhlii, herein we describe a new species of Eimeria from P. kuhlii from Shagrah, Saudi Arabia.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Twelve bats,
P. kuhlii (Natterer, 1819) were trapped alive at Shagrah during November, 1997 with the aid of mist nets. All bats were killed in the laboratory, and the abdominal cavity was opened. The intestinal tract, caecum, rectum and colon were slit lengthwise, and their contents were collected separately and mixed with 2.5% (w/v) aqueous potassium dichromate solution to inhibit bacterial growth. The suspension was then spread in a thin layer in petri dishes and incubated at 26 ± 2℃ for 1 week so that the oocysts could sporulate. The preparations were then microscopically examined for sporulation at 12 hr intervals. Sporulated oocysts were concentrated by flotation with Sheather' sugar solution (
McAllister et al., 1995). Fifty sporulated oocysts and 50 sporocysts were examined, and measured with a microscope fitted with a ×100 apochromatic oil immersion objective and a ×10 ocular micrometer. The number of layers of the oocyst wall, its thickness, and detailed structure of the sporocysts were examined after crushing the oocysts by pressure on the coverslip. All measurements are in micrometers (µm) with the mean followed by the range in parentheses.
RESULTS
Eimeria pipistrellus (Figs. 1-4) Description
Oocyst wall 1.2-1.5 (1.3) thick consisting of 2 layers of approximately equal thickness; outer, light brownish-yellow, smooth; inner dark, smooth; a micropyle is absent, but an oocyst residuum, consisting of one to three large globules, 5.2 (4.5-6.0), and a polar granule approximately 1.6 both are present. Sporulated oocysts (n=50) subspheroidal 24.8×23.2 (22-27×20-25) with L:W ratio 1.0-1.2 (1.06). Sporocysts ovoidal, slightly pointed at one end, 11.6×8.3 (10.5-13×7.5-9) with L:W ratio 1.4-1.5 (1.45), Stieda body present, but sub- and parastieda bodies absent. Sporocyst residuum present as numerous minute dispersed granules. Sporozoites elongate, lying head to tail, each with one large posterior refractile body.
Taxonomic summary
Type host: Pipistrellus kuhlii (Kuhl, 1819) Vespertilionidae
Type locality: Shagrah, central region, Saudi Arabia
Prevalence: Found in three of twelve (25%) P. kuhlii.
Site of infection: Unknown, oocysts recovered from intestinal contents.
Sporulation time: Six days at 26 ± 2℃
Etymology: The specific name Pipistrellus is derived from the generic name of the host.
Type specimens: Oocysts in 10% formalin and a phototype are deposited in the Parasitological Collection, Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia both as KSUC 105.
DISCUSSION
Only two species of
Eimeria have been described previously from the genus
Pipistrellus (Vespertilionidae),
E. macyi (
Wheat, 1975) and
E. redukeri (
Duszynski, 1997).
Eimeria pipistrellus n. sp. differs considerably from both of the above mentioned two species in having a larger oocyst with smooth outer wall. Moreover,
E. pipistrellus can be distinguished easily from
E. macyi because it has an oocyst residuum and lacks a substiedal body, and from
E. redukeri in having a larger oocyst residuum composed of one to three large globules, in having larger sporocysts with smaller length/width ratio, and in having small, dispersed granules as a sporocyst residuum rather than only one to three large globules seen in the sporocysts of
E. redukeri.
These differences in structural features, geographic distribution, and host species make us suggest that E. pipistrellus is a distinct form.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We wish to thank Dr. Awad El-Bahrawy for his great help in collecting the bats.
References
- 1. Duszynski DW. Coccidia from bats (Chiroptera) of the world: A new Eimeria species in Pipistrellus javanicus from Japan. J Parasitol 1997;83:280-282.
- 2. Duszynski DW, Barkley LJ. Eimeria from bats of the world: A new species in Tomopeas ravus from Peru. J Parasitol 1985;71:204-208.
- 3. Duszynski DW, Reduker DW, Parker BB. Eimeria from bats of the world. II. A new species in Tadarida femorasacca from Sonora, Mexico. J Parasitol 1988;74:317-321.
- 4. McAllister CT, Upton SJ, Jacobson ER, Kopit W. A description of Isospora amphiboluri (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from the inland bearded dragon, Pogona vitticeps (Sauria: Agamidae). J Parasitol 1995;81:281-284.
- 5. Scott DT, Duszynski DW. Eimeria from bats of the world; two new species from Myotis spp. (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae). J Parasitol 1997;83:495-501.
- 6. Wheat BE. Eimeria macyi sp.n. (Protozoa: Eimeriidae) from the eastern pipistrelle, Pipistrellus subflavus from Alabama. J Parasitol 1975;61:920-922.
Figs. 1-4
Photomicrographs and an drawing of sporulated oocysts of Eimeria pipistrellus from naturally infected Pipistrellus kuhlii (×1,000).
Fig. 1. The Stieda body and refractile globules. Fig. 2. The oocyst and sporocyst residuum. Fig. 3. The spherical, small polar granule. Fig. 4. A camera lucida drawing of sporulated oocyst of E. pipistrellus. Scale bar = 10 µm.
Table 1.Comparative data of Eimeria species from pipistrelle bats
Table 1.
|
E. macyi
|
E. redukeri
|
E. pipistrellus
|
|
Oocyst |
|
|
|
|
shape |
subspherical to |
subspherical |
subspherical |
|
size (μm) |
broadly ellipsoid |
|
|
|
16-21 × 15-19 |
16-25 × 14-21 |
22.3-27.2 × 20-25.4 |
|
(19 × 17.6) |
(20.3 × 18.1) |
(24.8 × 23.2) |
|
wall |
rough |
mammiliated |
smooth |
|
micopyle |
absent |
absent |
absent |
|
residuum |
bsent |
single (2.0 × 3.8) |
one to three |
|
|
|
5.2 (4.5-5.6) |
|
polar granule |
ellipsoid |
ellipsoid |
spheroid |
|
Sporocyst |
|
|
|
|
shape |
ovoid |
ovoid |
ovoid |
|
size (μm) |
10-12 × 6-8 |
8-12 × 5-8 |
10.5-12.9×7.5-9.4 |
|
(11 × 7) |
(10.6 × 6.6) |
(11.6 × 8.3) |
|
residuum |
several granules |
1-3 globules |
several granules |
|
Host |
Pipistrellus subflavus
|
Pipistrellus javanicus
|
Pipistrellus kuhlii
|
|
Locality |
USA |
Japan |
Saudi Arabia |
|
Citation |
Wheat (1975) |
Duszynski (1997) |
Present study |
Citations
Citations to this article as recorded by
- A New Species of Eimeria Schneider, 1875 (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from Myotis riparius Handley, 1960 (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in the Atlantic Forest of Brazil, with a Checklist of Eimeria spp. Reported from Bats
Marcos Tobias de Santana Miglionico, Luciana Moraes Costa, Ester Maria Mota, Helena Godoy Bergallo, Daniela Dias
Acta Parasitologica.2020; 65(2): 496. CrossRef - A novel coccidian (Apicomplexa: Eimeriidae) from Scotophilus leucogaster (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) in southern Saudi Arabia
Osama B. Mohammed, Donald W. Duszynski, Nabil Amor, Albdulaziz N. Alagaili
Parasitology Research.2020; 119(11): 3845. CrossRef - Ectoparasites and Pathogens of Kuhl’s Pipistrelle Pipistrellus kuhlii (Kuhl, 1817) (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae): Our Own and Published Data Review
M. V. Orlova, D. G. Smirnov, V. P. Vekhnik, A. M. Lukyanenko, A. V. Zabashta
Russian Journal of Biological Invasions.2020; 11(4): 348. CrossRef
