Parasites of Two Lizard Species, Anolis Punctatus and Anolis Transversalis (Squamata: Polychrotidae) from Brazil and Ecuador

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Parasites of two lizard species, Anolis punctatus and Anolis transversalis (Squamata: Polychrotidae) from Brazil and Ecuador

Stephen R. Goldberg1, Charles R. Bursey2, Laurie J. Vitt3

Anolis punctatus and Anolis transversalis,ar- and A. transversalis and examine these data in boreal anoles, are considered to be the “crown relation to the ecology of the lizard species. giants” among Amazonian anoles (Vitt et al., Twenty-one Anolis punctatus (mean snout-vent length [SVL]=70.4 ± 6.6 mm, range: 57-83 mm) and 17 Anolis 2003a). Crown giants are anoles with body sizes transversalis (SVL = 69.0 ± 11.6 mm, range: 48-83 mm) substantially larger than those of congeners were borrowed from the herpetology collection of the Sam occurring on tree trunks and on the ground Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History (OMNH) and examined for helminths. These anoles had previously been (Williams, 1972). Although both species appear utilized in an ecological study during which stomachs were to forage in the crown, A. punctatus is most eas- removed to determine diet (Vitt et al., 2003a). Thus stom- ily observed at the crown-trunk interface. achs were not available for this study. Collection locali- ties are as follows: A. punctatus, 11 (OMNH 37392-37402), Morphologically, A. punctatus fits the bau- Rondônia State, Brazil, 1998; eight (OMNH 37167-37173, plan of typical crown giant anoles (Irschick et 37676), Amazonas State, Brazil, 1997 (n = 7) and 1999 al., 1997); A. transversalis is similar, but not (n = 1); two (OMNH 40412-40413), Sucumbios Province, Ecuador, 1993, 1994; A. transversalis, five (OMNH 37029- used in the analysis. Individuals of these two 37033), Acre State, Brazil, 1996; eight (OMNH 37045, species are about the same size, A. transver- 37403-37410), Rondônia State, Brazil, 1998; four (OMNH salis slightly smaller and restricted to undis- 37677-37680), Amazonas State, Brazil, 1998. These anoles had originally been fixed in 10% formalin and stored in 70% turbed primary forest more so than A. puncta- ethanol. The small intestine, large intestine and lungs were tus, but both use similar microhabitats and have removed and searched for helminths using a dissecting mi- similar diets, volumetrically, A. punctatus ate croscope. The coelom was also searched. Each nematode was cleared in glycerol on a glass slide and identified with a mostly ants and orthopterans, A. transversalis light microscope. Cestodes were stained with hematoxylin, ate mostly roaches, beetles, and ants (Vitt et al., mounted in Canada balsam and examined as a whole mount. 2003a). Both species occur in the Amazonian Helminth species, number of helminths, prevalence (infected lizards/total lizards examined × 100), mean intensity regions of Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru (mean number helminths per infected lizard) and range are (Avila-Pires, 1995). Helminths of A. punctatus found in table 1. In the text the means are followed by ± one from Peru have been reported (Bursey et al., SD. Helminths were deposited in the United States Na- tional Parasite Collection (USNPC), Beltsville, Maryland: 2005), but to our knowledge, helminth parasites Anolis punctatus-Cyrtosomum longicaudatum (97009), Os- of A. transversalis are unknown. The purpose of waldocruzia vitti (97012, 97015, 97017), Oswaldofilaria this paper is to report helminths of A. punctatus brevicaudata (97011), Strongyluris oscari (97014, 97016, 97019), Falcaustra sp. (97010), Rhabdias sp. (97013, 97018); Anolis transversalis-Mesocestoides sp. (97022), Cyrtosomum longicaudatum (97023); Strongyluris oscari 1 - Whittier College, Department of Biology, Whittier, (97020, 97021, 97024). California 90608, USA Anolis punctatus harbored six species of e-mail: [email protected] helminths; A. transversalis three (table 1). Of 2 - Pennsylvania State University, Shenango Campus, De- these, only two species, Cyrtosomum longicau- partment of Biology, Sharon, Pennsylvania 16146, USA 3 - Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History and datum (in large intestines), and Strongyluris os- Zoology Department, University of Oklahoma, Norman, cari (in large and small intestines), occurred in Oklahoma 73072, USA both host species. Cyrtosomum longicaudatum

Table 1. Number of helminths, prevalence, mean intensity and range of infection for six species of helminths in Anolis punctatus and Anolis transversalis by locality.

Collection locality Anolis punctatus Anolis transversalis Helminth species Number Prevalence Mean intensity Range Number Prevalence Mean intensity Range

Acre State, Brazil Strongyluris oscari No hosts examined 6 60 2.0 ± 1.71-4 Amazonas State, Brazil Cyrtosomum longicaudatum 286 25 143.0 ± 83.0 60-226 27 25 27 – Oswaldocruzia vitti 1131 ––– – – Oswaldofilaria brevicaudata 1131 ––– – – Strongyluris oscari 63 88 9.0 ± 9.2 1-25 12 100 3.0 ± 1.42-5 Falcaustra sp. 3 25 1.5 ± 0.71-2– – – – Rhabdias sp. 6 38 2.0 ± 1.01-3– – – – Rondônia State, Brazil Mesocestoides sp. – – – – 3 13 3 – Strongyluris oscari 49 73 6.1 ± 3.82-1412384.0 ± 1.73-6 Oswaldocruzia vitti 10 55 1.7 1-2 – – – – Sucumbios Prov., Ecuador Strongyluris oscari 24 100 12.0 ± 11.34-20 Oswaldocruzia vitti 9 100 4.5 ± 3.5 2-7 No hosts examined Rhabdias sp. 5 100 2.5 ± 0.72-3 is known from iguanid, polychrotid and geck- occur before larvae move into the surround- onid lizards from Costa Rica, Cuba, Honduras, ing water where infection by skin penetration Mexico and Peru (Baker, 1987; Bursey et al., occurs (Anderson, 2000). Oswaldofilaria brevi- 2005). It produces eggs that hatch in utero with caudata is known from iguanid and polychrotid larvae developing to third stage before release lizards of Brazil, Cuba, Mexico, El Salvador to autoinfect the host (Anderson, 2000). Trans- and Venezuela (Baker, 1987). Microfilariae de- mission from host to host is not understood; velop to the infective stage in mosquitoes (An- Petter (1966) claimed that tortoises become in- derson, 2000). Species of the genus Falcaus- fected only after attaining sexual maturity and tra occur in the digestive tracts of fish, amphib- suggested the possibility of transmission during ians and reptiles and are world-wide in distri- mating. Strongyluris oscari has been reported bution with some 80 species known (Bursey et in teiid and iquanid lizards from Bolivia, Brazil al., 2000; Bursey and Kinsella, 2003). Of these, and Peru (Baker, 1987; Roca, 1997; Bursey et only F. belemensis is known to infect Neotrop- al., 2005). It is a monoxenous (direct life cycle) ical (gymnophthalmid) lizards (Bursey et al., species; eggs containing the infective stage are 2000). Species of Falcaustra are thought to de- ingested by the host (Anderson, 2000). velop to the third stage outside the host and Four species of nematodes, Oswaldocruzia then invade various invertebrates which serve vitti (in small intestines), Oswaldofilaria bre- as paratenic hosts (Anderson, 2000). Of the vicaudata (in body cavity), Rhabdias sp. (in 48 species of Rhabdias, only three species are lungs), and larvae of Falcaustra sp. (in large known to infect lizards: Rhabdias chamaeleonis intestines) were found only in A. puncta- and Rhabdias gemellipara from the Ethiopian tus and the cestode species, (as tetrathyridia) biogeographical region; Rhabdias anolis from Mesocestoides sp. (in body cavity), only in the Neotropical region (Bursey et al., 2003). A. transversalis. Oswaldocruzia vitti is known Rhabdias of undetermined species have been re- from gymnophthalmid lizards of Brazil and ported from Caribbean lizards, Anolis cristatel- Ecuador (Bursey and Goldberg, 2004). Eggs in lus, A. evermanni, A. gundlachi, A. lineatopus, feces develop into first-stage larvae, two moults and A. wattsi (Bursey et al., 2005). Species of