DOI: 10.2478/s11686-008-0025-8 © 2008 W. Stefañski Institute of Parasitology, PAS Acta Parasitologica, 2008, 53(2), 117–119; ISSN 1230-2821 Isospora cagasebi sp. nov. (Apicomplexa, Eimeriidae) from the bananaquit, Coereba flaveola of Brazil Bruno Pereira Berto1, Walter Flausino2, Hermes Ribeiro Luz3, Ildemar Ferreira3 and Carlos Wilson Gomes Lopes2* 1Curso de Pós-Graduaçno em CiLncias Veterinárias, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ); 2Departamento de Parasitologia Animal, Instituto de Veterinária, UFRRJ, BR-465 km 7, 23890-000 Seropédica, RJ; 3Departamento de Biologia Animal, Instituto de Biologia, UFRRJ , BR-465 km 7, 23890-000 Seropédica, RJ; Brasil Abstract Isospora cagasebi sp. nov. (Apicomplexa, Eimeriidae) is reported from a bananaquit, Coereba flaveola from Brazil. Oocysts are sub-spherical, 24.9 × 24.5 (23.0–26.1 × 22.6–25.4), with a smooth, bilayered wall ~1.4 and mean L:W ratio 1.0; micropyle, oocyst residuum and polar granule are absent. Sporocysts are elongate ovoidal, 18.7 × 11.5 (17.6–19.4 × 10.4–12.3), with both Stieda and substieda bodies and mean L:W ratio 1.6; sporocyst residuum present and sporozoites each with 2 refractiles bodies. Keywords Coccidia, Isospora cagasebi, birds, Coereba flaveola, Brazil Introduction This paper describes one new species of Isospora found infecting the bananaquit C. flaveola at the Marambaia Island The bananaquit, Coereba flaveola L., 1758 is a nectar-feeding in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. bird, often compared to hummingbirds, which uses flower nectar as its primary source of food. Although it does use its sharp beak to pierce flowers from the side to feed, like some Materials and methods hummingbirds, the bananaquit cannot hover like a humming- bird (Stiles and Skutch 1989). It is most often found within the Fecal samples were collected from two bananaquits on Ma- range from southern Mexico to northern Argentina and large- rambaia Island, placed into plastic vials containing 2.5% (w/v) ly eastward throughout South America. It occupies most of the potassium dichromate solution (K2Cr2O7) in a ratio of 1:6 Caribbean Islands and on rare occasions is found in Florida (v/v) and transported to the Laboratório de Coccídios e Coc- (Merola-Zwartjes 1998). cidioses, Projeto Sanidade Animal (Embrapa/UFRRJ), Depar- There is a divergence of opinions among ornithologists tamento de Parasitologia Animal, Instituto de Veterinária da about where to place bananaquits taxonomically, but C. flave- Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro. To permit spor- ola is frequently classified separately in the Coerebidae (How- ulation, samples were placed in Petri dishes forming a thin ard and Moore 1991). However, recently, Burns et al. (2003) layer of liquid (~5 mm) at room temperature (23–28°C) for 10 through the study of the phylogenetic relationships of neotrop- days until 70% of the oocysts were sporulated. Oocysts were ical honeycreepers, approached C. flaveola of the Thraupi- recovered by flotation in Sheather’s sugar solution (sp. g. dae and, more distantly, Emberezidae families. 1.20) and were examined under a light microscope followed Isosporid coccidia found in birds of the Emberizidae and the procedures outlined by Duszynski and Wilber (1997). Mor- Thraupidae have been reported since 1896 when Labeé (1896) phological observations [micropyle (M), oocyst residuum found Isospora oocysts in the yellowhammer, Emberiza cit- (OR), sporocyst residuum (SR), polar granule (PG), Stieda ronella L., 1758. body (SB), substieda body (SSB), refractile body (SRB)] were *Corresponding author: [email protected] 118 Bruno Pereira Berto et al. Œl¹ski performed using a Zeiss binocular microscope with apochro- Sporulation time: 3–7 days at 23–28°C. matic oil immersion objective and oocysts were measured Site of infection: Unknown, oocysts found in feces. with an ocular micrometer. All measurements are in µm. Line Etymology: The specific name is derived from the com- drawings were prepared with a Wild binocular microscope mon local name for C. flaveola, which is Caga-sebo. (M-20) with a drawing tube. Photomicrographs were taken using a digital camera model CD Mavica MVC-CD250 Sony®, and a photographic camera f-KAS Automatic-2 with Discussion films ISO 100 (21 DINA) (Kodak, Mexico). Size ranges are in parentheses followed by means. Descriptions of isosporid coccidia in Thraupidae family are scarce. The first species is described by Boughton et al. (1938) when coccidia were recovered of four Andean tanagers. Results However, all were reported from captured birds in zoos and none of the coccidia were described or named. Isospora cagasebi sp. nov. (Figs 1 and 2) Three species were described until now. Isospora thraupis was described by Lainson (1994) from the palm tanager, Description of sporulated oocyst: Oocysts sub-spherical, 24.9 Thraupis palmarum Wied, 1821. Templar et al. (2004) describ- × 24.5 (23.0–26.1 × 22.6–25.4) (n = 23) with a smooth, bilay- ed I. andesensis from the common bush tanager Chlorospin- ered wall, 1.45 (1.3–1.5) thick; the inner layer is darker than gus ophthalmicus Du Bus de Gisignies, 1847 and Metzelaars the outer layer. The mean L:W (length:width) ratio is 1.0. M, et al. (2005) described I. iridosornisi from the yellow-throat- OR and PG are absent. ed tanager, Iridosornis analis Tschudi, 1844. Description of sporocyst and sporozoites: Sporocysts are Isospora cagasebi is larger than I. thraupis, I. andesensis elongate ovoidal, 18.7 × 11.5 (17.6–19.4 × 10.4–12.3) (n = and I. iridosornisi. Moreover, I. cagasebi does not present PG 23). The mean L:W ratio is 1.6. SB knob-like, ~0.8–1.1 high observed in I. andesensis and I. iridosornisi and is differenti- × 1.6–1.8 wide, SSB prominent, ~1.8–2.3 high × 2.2–2.7 ated of I. thraupis for presenting bilayered wall and prominent wide. Within the sporocyst is a dispersed SR and 4 randomly SSB. arranged, vermiform sporozoites, each with 2 ovoid SRB. Numerous coccidia have been described from birds of Type host: Coereba flaveola Linnaeus, 1758 (Passerifor- Emberizidae family. Isospora emberizae (Mandal and Cha- mes, Coerebidae), captured April 30, 2007. kravarty 1964), whose host Emberiza bruniceps Brandt, 1841 Type specimens: oocysts in 10% aqueous (v/v) buffered (red-headed bunting) is distributed in Asia and Europe, I. exi- formalin deposited at the Parasitology Collection, in the De- gua, I. fragmenta, I. rotunda, I. temeraria (McQuistion and partment of Animal Parasitology, UFRRJ, Seropédica, Rio de Wilson 1988), whose host Camarhynchus parvulus Gould, Janeiro, Brazil. Repository number is P-19/2007, including 1837 (small tree finch) is endemic of Galapagos Islands, and photosyntypes and line drawings. I. geospizae (Mcquistion and Wilson 1989) and I. daphnensis Type locality: Marambaia Island (23°04´S and 43°53´W), (Mcquistion 1990), whose host Geospiza fortis Gould, 1837 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (medium-ground finch) is also endemic of Galapagos Islands, Prevalence: 1/2 (50%) was infected within the same local- inhabit South America. All of hosts cited previously are not ity. sympatric with C. flaveola. Fig. 1. Composite line drawing of sporulated oocyst of Isospora Fig. 2. Photomicrograph of sporulated oocyst of Isospora cagasebi cagasebi sp. nov. from Coereba flaveola. Scale bar = 10 µm sp. nov. Scale bar = 10 µm Isospora cagasebi sp. nov. from C. flaveola in Brazil 119 Zdzis³aw Levine (1982) described I. vanriperorum from common Duszynski D., Wilber P. 1997. A guideline for the preparation of cardinal Cardinalis cardinalis L., 1758. Its oocysts present species descriptions in the Eimeriidae. Journal of Parasitol- single-layered wall and PG. I. paroariae, reported by Upton ogy, 83, 333–336. DOI: 10.2307/3284470. Howard R., Moore A. 1991. A complete checklist of the birds of the et al. (1985), from the red-crested cardinal, Paroaria corona- world. Academic Press, London, 622 pp. ta Miller, 1776, differs from the oocysts described in this Labbé A. 1896. Recherches zoologiques, cytologiques et biologiques paper because are minors, to present SB sharpened and ante- sur less coccidies. Archives de Zoologie Experimentale et Ge- rior SRB of the sporozoite absent. nerale, 24, 517–654. McQuistion and Capparella (1992) described I. pityli and Lainson R. 1994. Observations on some avian coccidia (Apicomple- xa: Eimeriidae) in Amazonian Brazil. Memórias do Instituto I. formarum from slate-colored grosbeak Saltator grossus L., Oswaldo Cruz, 89, 303–311. 1766 (= Pitylus grossus) in Ecuador. The oocysts of I. pityli Levine N.D. 1982. Isospora vanriperorum n. nom. for I. cardinalis are smaller and presents nipple-like SB and SSB absent. Iso- Levine, Van Riper & Van Riper, 1980, preoccupied. Journal spora formarum is different by presenting nipple-like SB with of Protozoology, 29, 653. triangular-shaped SSB. Mandal A.K., Chakravarty M.M. 1964. Studies on some aspects of avian coccidia (Protozoa: Sporozoa). 2. Five new species of Isospora tiaris by Ball and Daszak (1997) was described Isospora Schneider, 1881. Proceedings of the Zoological So- from soot grassquit, Tiaris fuliginosa Wied, 1830 in Venezu- ciety, 17, 35–45. ela. Oocysts are smaller than those described in this paper and McQuistion T.E. 1990. Isospora daphnensis n. sp. (Apicomplexa: present PG. Eimeriidae) from the medium ground finch (Geospiza fortis) Carvalho-Filho et al. (2005) identified three new species from the Galapagos Island. Journal of Parasitology, 76, 30– 32. DOI: 10.2307/3282623. from the double-collared seed eater, Sporophila caerulescens McQuistion T.E., Capparella A. 1992. Two new coccidian parasites Vieillot, 1823, from Eastern Brazil: I. sporophilae, I. flausinoi from the slate-colored grosbeak (Pitylus grossus) of South and I. teixeirafilhoi. First of all, these three species are small- America. Journal of Parasitology, 78, 805–807. DOI: 1023 er and, in second; present PG and SSB absent. 07/3283308. Recently, Silva et al.