New Aspidoderidae species parasite of Didelphis aurita (Mammalia: Didelphidae): A light and scanning electron microscopy approach

Nematodes of the family Aspidoderidae (Nematoda: Heterakoidea) Skrjabin and Schikobalova, 1947, are widely distributed in the Americas. The family Aspidoderidae includes the subfamilies Aspidoderinae Skrjabin and Schikobalova, 1947, and Lauroiinae Skrjabin and Schikobalova, 1951. These two subfamilies are delineated by the presence or absence of cephalic cordons at the anterior region. The nematodes in the subfamily Aspidoderinae, which includes the genus Aspidodera Railliet and Henry, 1912, are represented by nematodes with anterior cephalic cordons at the anterior end. The nematodes of the genus Aspidodera Railliet and Henry, 1912, are found in the cecum and large intestine of mammals of the orders Edentata, Marsupialia and Rodentia. Species within this genus have many morphological similarities. The use of scanning electron microscopy allows the specific characterization of the species within this genus. In the present work, we describe a new species of Aspidodera parasite of the large intestine of Didelphis aurita (Mammalia: Didelphidae) Wied-Neuwied, 1826, collected from Cachoeiras de Macacu, Rio de Janeiro. The combination of light and scanning electron microscopy allowed us a detailed analysis of this nematode.