Eupolystoma longicaecum n. sp. (Polyopisthocotyla: Polystomatidae) parasitic in the urinary bladder of Poyntonophrynus fenoulheti (Hewitt & Methuen, 1912)

Polystomatid flatworms comprise a diverse group of polyopisthocotylan flatworm parasites infecting tetrapod hosts and have a global distribution across hospitable continents.Of the 19 genera known from amphibians, Eupolystoma is one of four genera infecting frogs in the Ethiopian Realm and is currently known in Africa with four documented species and India with two species.During a survey conducted in Limpopo Province, South Africa, an unidentified polystome species was discovered in the urinary bladder of the northern pygmy toad Poyntonophrynus fenoulheti.From the 17 frogs examined over a two-year period, eight were found to be infected (prevalence 47%, mean intensity 4.5) with as many as 13 worms per host.These parasites are readily distinguished by a posterior intestinal anastomosis located at the level of the third quarter of the body, extending posteriad as a single caecum to the haptoral junction, whereas parasites of all other Eupolystoma species possess shorter caeca that extend beyond the haptoral junction into the haptor.We therefore provide a formal description of this new polystomatid flatworm species, recovered as the sister species of E. vanasi in a phylogenetic analysis based on concatenated 18S, 28S, 12S, and COI sequences.