NOTES ON SOME NEMATODES OF MARINE FISHES FROM FUJIAN, CHINA

The specimens for the present study were collected in 1980 from Shima, Chongwu and Dongshan of Fujian Province, China. Through the examination of 121 fishes belonging to 37 species, 73 of them (63.33%) were found to be infected by nematodes (larvae occupying 89.04%), and four species of worms belonging to 2 families and 3 genera were revealed. Among them, 2 are new to science and Contracaecum (E.) clavatum (Budolphi, 1809) Skrjabin, 1920 is recorded for the first time from China. In addition, Pomadasys hasta is found to be a new host of Contracaecum (E.) clavatum.The diagnoses of the new species are given below. All the type specimens are deposited in the Institute of Zoology, Academia Sinica.1. Paraleptus chiloscyllii, sp. nov. (fig. 1)Holotype , allotype , paratypes 13 and 27, found in the stomach of Chiloscyllium plagiosum from Shima, Pujian.Male: Body 17.75-26.38 mm in length and 0.282-0.573 mm in diameter. Caudal alae present, with 2 pairs of preanal, 1 pair of adanal and 3 pairs of postanal pe-duneulated papillae, and 4 pairs of sessile papillae at tip of tail. Spicules unequal in length, the left being 0.805-1.162 mm and the right 0.191-0.232 mm.Female: Body 19.18-31.65mm in length and 0.625-0.955mm in diameter. Vulva slightly posterior to middle of body.The present worm resembles Paraleptus scyllii Wu, 1927 in the body size, but is distingushed from the latter by the unequal instead of equal spicules (L. S. 0.805-1.162mm and E. S. 0.191-0.232 mm in length as against 0.21-0.25mm), by the presence of 2 pairs of preanal, 1 pair of adanal and 3 pairs of postanal instead of 4 pairs of preanal and 5 pairs of postanal pedunculated papillae, and 4 pairs instead of 10-11 pairs of sessile caudal papillae, and by the smaller eggs (0.0415-0.0462 × 0.025-0.033 mm as against 0.31 × 0.44mm).2. Raphidascaroides myliobatum, sp. nov. (fig. 2)Holotype , allotype , paratypes 2 and 5, found in stomach of Myliobatis tobijei from Chongwu, Fujian. Male: Body 42.05-56.80 mm in length and 0.606-0.789 mm in diameter. Preanal papillae 17-19 pairs (larger ones 6 pairs and smaller ones 11-13 pairs), adanal papillae 3 pairs (larger ones 1 pair and smaller ones 2 pairs), postanal papillae 6 pairs (all smaller ones). Spicules unequal in length, the right one 3.137-4.109mm and the left 1.238-1.544mm. Gubernaeulum present.Female: 56.25-68.75mm in length and 0.664-1.075mm in diameter. Vulva situated in the anterior half of body.The new species differs from any of the known members of the genus in the presence of gubernaculum, in the number and arrangement of anal papillae, in the unequal spicules, and in the very small ventricnlus appendix.