title: Mawsonascaris parva sp. nov. (Nematoda: Ascaridida) from the Arabian whipray Himantura randalli Last, Manjaji-Matsumoto et Moore (Rajiformes: Dasyatidae) off the coast of Iraq.
abstract: Mawsonascaris parva sp. nov. collected from the Arabian whipray Himantura randalli Last, Manjaji-Matsumoto et Moore (Rajiformes: Dasyatidae) off the coast of Iraq is described and illustrated using light and scanning electron microscopy. The new species differs from its congeners by its small body size (8.11-18.2 mm long), the absence of an intestinal caecum, the slightly unequal spicules (left and right spicule 1.08-2.50 mm and 0.98-2.01 mm long, respectively, representing 12.1-13.7% and 10.1-12.1% of body length), the number and arrangement of male caudal papillae (13-14 pairs in total, arranged as: 7-8 pairs of precloacal, 1 pair of double paracloacal and 5 pairs of postcloacal) and the presence of a single, median precloacal papilla. Thus, a total of six species of Mawsonascaris are now known and this is the first species of this genus recorded from species of Himantura.
authors.affiliation: Department of Fisheries and Marine Resources, College of Agriculture, Basrah University, Iraq.
authors.forename: Atheer H
authors.initials: AH
authors.lastname: Ali
authors.forename: Lu-Ping
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Nadirah K
authors.initials: NK
authors.lastname: Al-Salim
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000825:Animal Structures / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D000818:Animals; D017162:Ascaridida / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017191:Ascaridida Infections / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D018940:Elasmobranchii / Q000469:parasitology*; D005393:Fish Diseases / Q000469:parasitology*; D007493:Iraq; D008297:Male; D008853:Microscopy; D012623:Seawater