Eimeria roobroucki Grès & Marchandeau & Landau 2002, n. sp.

Eimeria roobroucki n. sp. (Figs 1; 2) MATÉRIEL TYPE. — Il n’y a aucun moyen de conserver durablement les oocystes de coccidies; nous déposons donc une photographie d’oocyste excrété par le lapin n° 36 LV provenant d’Arjuzanx (MNHN P301 LV). HÔTE TYPE. — Oryctolagus cuniculus Linné, 1758. ÉTYMOLOGIE. — L’espèce est dédiée à A. Roobrouck qui nous a généreusement aidés pour la collecte du matériel. DISTRIBUTION. — L’espèce a été trouvée en France. DESCRIPTION DE L’ OOCYSTE (FIGS 1; 2) Les oocystes sont ellipsoïdes avec un léger aplatissement du côté du micropyle. Les côtés de l’oocyste sont parallèles sur presque toute leur longueur. Les mensurations moyennes sont 55 ± 2,7 µm de long et 33,7 ± 1,3 µm de large (mesure de 30 oocystes). La paroi externe est épaisse, lisse, de couleur brune. Cette paroi fragile se rompt très fréquemment lors des manipulations. Le micropyle ne présente pas d’épaississement en périphérie et mesure en moyenne 8 µm. Il n’y a pas de corps résiduel dans l’oocyste. Les sporocystes sont allongés. Les corps de Stieda sont minces en croissant et les sous-corps de Stieda forment des demi-disques clairs. Les corps résiduels dans les sporocystes sont volumineux, irréguliers plutôt allongés, et peuvent recouvrir la quasi-totalité d’un sporozoïte. DIAGNOSE DIFFÉRENTIELLE Nous comparons l’espèce avec les coccidies du lapin et du lièvre européens. Les espèces d’ Eimeria décrites chez Oryctolagus cuniculus Linné, 1758 Les 10 espèces d’ Eimeria d’ Oryctolagus répertoriées en France par Eckert et al. (1995) et les 12 autres espèces mentionnées par Pellerdy (1974), dans des élevages de lapins domestiques, ont toutes des oocystes de taille nettement inférieure à celle d’ Eimeria roobroucki n. sp. La plus grande est E. irresidua Kessel & Jankiewicz, 1931 qui est l’espèce se rapprochant le plus d’ E. roobroucki n. sp. Elle est comme cette dernière dépourvue de corps résiduel de l’oocyste et la forme générale « sub-rectangulaire » des oocystes se rapproche le plus de celle de notre description. Cependant, elle est nettement plus petite: 38,3 × 25,6 µm, selon Pellerdy (1974), 38,4 × 23,2 µm selon Norton et al. (1979), 39,2 × 23,1 µm selon Eckert et al. (1995). Les espèces d’ Eimeria décrites chez Lepus europaeus Linné, 1758 Pellerdy (1974) a répertorié 12 espèces d’ Eimeria chez le lièvre européen. Onze ont des tailles nettement inférieures à notre nouvelle espèce; seule E. stefanskii Pastuszko, 1961 est plus grande (59-68 × 32-37 µm); elle se différencie d’ E. roobroucki n. sp. par la présence d’un corps résiduel de l’oocyste et son absence dans les sporocystes. Parmi les espèces décrites plus récemment, la plus grande Eimeria parasite du lièvre est E. macrosculpta Sugar, 1978 chez Lepus europaeus. Celle-ci est l’espèce morphologiquement la plus proche d’ E. roobroucki n. sp. Son oocyste est décrit comme cylindrique et symétrique, ou ovoïde allongé, mesurant 46 × 26 µm. Outre la plus petite taille des oocystes et sporocystes, E. macrosculpta se différencie d’ E. roobroucki n. sp. par la présence de granulations sur la paroi externe du premier, la paroi du second étant lisse.Published as part of Grès, Virginie, Marchandeau, Stéphane & Landau, Irène, 2002, Description d'une nouvelle espèce d'Eimeria (Coccidia, Eimeridea) chez le lapin de garenne Oryctolagus cuniculus en France, pp. 203-207 in Zoosystema 24 (2) on pages 205-206, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.539989

Description d'une nouvelle espèce d'Eimeria (Coccidia, Eimeridea) chez le lapin de garenne Oryctolagus cuniculus en France

Grès, Virginie, Marchandeau, Stéphane, Landau, Irène (2002): Description d'une nouvelle espèce d'Eimeria (Coccidia, Eimeridea) chez le lapin de garenne Oryctolagus cuniculus en France. Zoosystema 24 (2): 203-207, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.539989

Plasmodium alaudae

Plasmodium alaudae (Celli & Sanfelice, 1891) (Fig. 2C) MATERIAL EXAMINED. — France. Landes, Saint-Julienen-Born, 44°03’42’’N, 1°13’33’’W, blood smears of A. arvensis number 740U, 25.X.1996 (MNHN P2 - XXV, 24-43); 741U, 25.X.1996 (MNHN P2 -XXV, 44-64). DISTRIBUTION. — Italy (Celli & Sanfelice 1891); new record for the Landes, France. HOSTS. — Pica pica (type host); new record for Alauda arvensis. REDESCRIPTION The parasites are small in size, and are found located at the apex of non-modified RBCs where nuclei are not displaced or only a little. The schizonts are compact and rounded, and the nuclei, eight in number, are dense roughly round with a clear centre. The cytoplasm is relatively abundant with a few dispersed vacuoles and two granules of black pigment. The gametocytes have not been identified but are probably elongated. TAXONOMIC STATUS Celli & Sanfelice (1891) described Haemoproteus alaudae (later trasferred to Plasmodium) in the blood of the skylark. At that time the authors elected to reserve Plasmodium to the parasites of humans. This species was considered to be composed of three types in the blood that were distinguished by the time required for development. When the figures published by these authors are carefully examined (Celli & Sanfelice 1891: pl. III), it became clear that they were in fact dealing with multiple species, not an unexpected occurrence in skylarks: a large species with schizonts of 22-30 nuclei where the RBC nuclei are displaced or even expelled (Celli & Sanfelice 1891: figs 19-21), a smaller apical species with 8 or 9 nuclei that does not displace the RBC nucleus or only little (same, figs 16, 17), a latero-apical species with 18 nuclei where the RBC nuclei is unaffected (same, fig. 18), and finally a very small species with 8 nuclei where the RBC is slightly rounded and its nucleus displaced (same, fig. 15). For the most part these species could not be confidently ascribed to a known species. However, the taxon H. alaudae could be retained for the form depicted in Celli & Sanfelice’s plate III, figs 16, 17, for the species described above in view of the following similarities: small size, apical position, number of nuclei = 8, and little or no displacement of the nuclei in RBCs that are neither rounded nor hypertrophied. Gametocytes could not be linked with confidence with the gametocytes observed for this species. DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS Plasmodium alaudae, by virtue of the number of nuclei (8) in the schizont, could be compared to Plasmodium vaughani merulae Corradetti & Scanga, 1972, a parasite of Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758, where 8 merozoites can be observed per schizont albeit rarely. However, the absence of a bluish refractile globule in P. alaudae clearly distinguishes it from P. vaughani. Plasmodium alaudae is close to the rounded apical forms of P. ashfordi that also produce 7 or 8 nuclei on average. It differs with respect to the absence of the fan-shaped schizonts that characterise P.ashfordi, and by its denser and clearly delimited nature. Plasmodium alaudae must also be distinguished from P. caloti n. sp. (see below). Plasmodium ghadiriani Chavatte & Landau, 2007 (Fig. 2D) MATERIAL EXAMINED. — France. Landes, Saint-Julienen-Born, 44°03’42’’N, 1°13’33’’W, blood smears of A. arvensis number 741U, 25.X.1996 (MNHN P2-XXV, 44-64). DISTRIBUTION. — Seine-Saint-Denis, France (Chavatte et al. 2007); new record for the Landes, France. HOSTS. — Pica pica (type host); new record for Alauda arvensis. REMARKS This parasite is identical to that described in the magpie. The schizonts are large and elongate and lie next to the laterally displaced nucleus of the RBC that is often enlarged. Young schizonts characteristically contain a few large chromatin masses that will fragment into smaller rounded nuclei. The older schizonts observed contained 17 nuclei, consistent with the 18 to 24 nuclei enumerated in the magpie parasite.Published as part of Chavatte, Jean-Marc, Grès, Virginie, Snounou, Georges, Chabaud, Alain & Landau, Irène, 2009, Plasmodium (Apicomplexa) of the skylark (Alauda arvensis), pp. 369-383 in Zoosystema 31 (2) on pages 376-378, DOI: 10.5252/z2009n2a8, http://zenodo.org/record/539100

Plasmodium Marchiafava & Celli 1885

Genus Plasmodium Marchiafava & Celli, 1885 REMARKS All the Plasmodium parasites were found within erythrocytes, and except for a few rings none were seen in reticulocytes. The infected RBC were at times deformed, rounded or discoloured by certain parasites, but the deformability observed was not more pronounced than that observed in other birds such as the magpie (Chavatte et al. 2007) or the sparrow (Landau et al. 2003). On the other hand, the red blood cell nucleus was often slightly tilted even by parasites that did not truly displace it. For the known Plasmodium species, only the main characters are briefly described. Molecular biology studies (Martinsen et al. 2007) evidenced that some of the avian Plasmodium sub-genera created by Corradetti et al. (1963) are polyphyletic and until the situation is clarified we prefer not to use them.Published as part of Chavatte, Jean-Marc, Grès, Virginie, Snounou, Georges, Chabaud, Alain & Landau, Irène, 2009, Plasmodium (Apicomplexa) of the skylark (Alauda arvensis), pp. 369-383 in Zoosystema 31 (2) on pages 371-372, DOI: 10.5252/z2009n2a8, http://zenodo.org/record/539100

Plasmodium caloti Chavatte & Grès & Snounou & Chabaud & Landau 2009, n. sp.

Plasmodium caloti Chavatte & Landau, n. sp. (Fig. 2B) TYPE MATERIAL. — France. Landes, Saint-Julien-en-Born, 44°03’42’’N, 1°13’33’’W, blood smear of A. arvensis number 741U, 25.X.1996 (MNHN 440LV PXIII, 63) (Fig. 3D). Paratypes: same data as holotype, blood smears of A. arvensis number 741U, 25.X.1996 (MNHN P2- XXV, 44-64). ETYMOLOGY. — This species is dedicated to the memory of Jacques Calot. DISTRIBUTION. — Known only from the type locality, Saint-Julien-en-Born, Landes, France. HOST. — Alauda arvensis (type host). DESCRIPTION The average sized parasite is found in a rounded highly hypertrophied RBC that is sometimes discoloured and whose nucleus is off-centre though not in close contact with the cell edge. Among the small or medium sized (<10 nuclei) Plasmodium species of the skylark, P. caloti n. sp. is the only one where RBCs are modified to this extent. In general the shape of the immature and nearly mature schizonts is rounded, their contours regular and the nuclei, usually 8 in number, are dense and are predominantly found at the periphery. As they near maturity, these nuclei can bulge slightly to the outside. The abundant and homogeneous cytoplasm is pink coloured and contains a small number of vacuoles. The pigment is fine and agglomerated. Gametocytes are rounded like the schizonts and lie in rounded RBCs. DIFFERENTIAL DIAGNOSIS Plasmodium caloti n. sp. should be compared to P. subpraecox, a parasite described briefly and illustrated by Grassi & Feletti in Athene noctua (Grassi & Feletti 1892: fig. 8). These authors have also recorded it in Alauda arvensis and in Passer hispaniolensis. According to these authors the number of merozoites is 5 to 12. In a re-description of this species, Giovannola (1939), enumerated 10 to 12 merozoites in the mature schizont, and from his illustrations one can note a few similarities with P. caloti n. sp.: defined outlines, cytoplasmic abundance, and a rather peripheral location of the nuclei in mature schizonts. On the other hand, the parasite described here produces an average of 8 merozoites and leads to a much more pronounced hypertrophy of the RBC. Plasmodium caloti n. sp. and P. alaudae differ by the following features: the larger size of P. caloti n. sp., its more or less central position in a considerably enlarged RBC with a displaced nucleus, contrasts with the small size of the apically located P. alaudae where infected RBCs are not modified nor their nuclei displaced.Published as part of Chavatte, Jean-Marc, Grès, Virginie, Snounou, Georges, Chabaud, Alain & Landau, Irène, 2009, Plasmodium (Apicomplexa) of the skylark (Alauda arvensis), pp. 369-383 in Zoosystema 31 (2) on page 376, DOI: 10.5252/z2009n2a8, http://zenodo.org/record/539100