title: Revision of the species complex Amidostomum acutum (Lundahl, 1848) (Nematoda: Amidostomatidae).
abstract: Most available literature indicates that the most dominant nematode in Anatinae is a cosmopolitan species Amidostomum acutum (Lundahl, 1848). However, studies on wild duck helminthofauna in northwestern Poland suggest that these birds are attacked by not one but three different parasite species, previously described as a single species. Hence the aim of this study was the redescription of the species complex Amidostomum acutum, conducted on a representative sample of parasites and their hosts. The study material consisted of 6,430 nematode individuals, isolated from the digestive tracts of 1,005 wild ducks, representing 17 species. Unsupervised classification was performed using a Kohonen artificial neural network. The analysis confirmed the division of nematodes into three groups corresponding to three species, both for males and females. Taking into account the qualitative characteristics of the parasites, one can 100% accurately identify these species. The three groups of parasites were also significantly different in their ecology, manifested in their distinct host specificity.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Biology and Ecology of Parasites, West Pomeranian University of Technology, Judyma Str. 20, 71-466 Szczecin, Poland. katarzyna.kavetska@zut.edu.pl
authors.forename: Katarzyna M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Kavetska
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Królaczyk
authors.forename: Agata
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Stapf
authors.forename: Wilhelm
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Grzesiak
authors.forename: Elżbieta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kalisińska
authors.forename: Bogumiła
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pilarczyk
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild / Q000469:parasitology; D004372:Ducks / Q000469:parasitology*; D005260:Female; D041981:Gastrointestinal Tract / Q000469:parasitology; D008297:Male; D008853:Microscopy; D016571:Neural Networks, Computer; D011044:Poland; D014251:Trichostrongyloidea / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification