Numenius gendrei Dubois 1959, n. comb.
Creators: name: Dronen, Norman O.
name: Blend, Charles K.
Publisher: name: Zenodo
Year: 2015
Subjects: Biodiversity
Taxonomy
Animalia
Chordata
Aves
Charadriiformes
Scolopacidae
Numenius
Numenius gendrei

description: Neohaematotrephus gendrei (Dubois, 1959) n. comb. — Type species
Type host. African jacana, Actophilornis africanus (Gmelin) (Charadriiformes: Jacanidae); given as Arctophilornis africana in the original description.
Type locality. French Guinea, western Africa.
Previously proposed synonym. Cyclocoelum obscurum of Joyeux & Baer (1927) — Dubois (1959).
Remarks. Although originally (briefly) described as Cyclocoelum (Haematotrephus) gendrei Dubois, 1959, this species was transferred to Corpopyrum (= Haematotrephus) by Yamaguti (1971). The description and Figs. 3 a and 4 in the original description indicate that the genital pore is located well above the mid-level of the pharynx (“Genital pore barely behind the anterior edge of the pharynx”) and therefore it must be considered to be prepharyngeal. These specimens may be contracted, which may have altered the position of the genital pore relative to the pharynx and therefore the actual placement of the genital pore may be more posterior (possibly postpharyngeal). On the one hand, the presence of a prepharyngeal genital pore would place this species in either the relatively new genus Neohaematotrephus (vitelline fields confluent posteriorly) or Harrahium (vitelline fields are not confluent posteriorly), rather than Haematotrephus (see the discussion of the genital pore placement as a distinguishing characteristic in the Cyclocoelidae given later). The original description of this species indicates that the vitelline fields are “confluent or not”. Figure 3 b (paratype) of Dubois (1959) shows the vitelline fields not to be confluent posteriorly, while Fig. 4 shows them to be confluent. On the other hand, if the genital pore is postpharyngeal, then it becomes a choice between Haematotrephus (vitelline fields not confluent posteriorly, testes oblique), Uvitellina (vitelline fields confluent posteriorly, testes oblique) and Wardianum (vitelline fields not confluent posteriorly, testes side by side). In specimens of species of cyclocoelids where the vitelline fields are typically confluent posteriorly; it is not unusual to have the confluence masked by egg-ladden uterine loops and/or the cyclocoel; however, as with any characteristic, it is not unexpected to find some abberant specimens of a species where the vitelline fields are not completely confluent posteriorly.The genital pore in this species is likely prepharyngeal and the vitelline fields are likely confluent, and this species has been placed in Neohaematotrephus; however, until there is a resolution to these incongruities, we recommend that this species be considered in any comparison of specimens in Haematotrephinae to existing species of Haematotrephus, Harrahium, Neohaematotrephus and Uvitellina. That being said, Dubois (1959) apparently considered the two expressions of the posterior extent of the vitelline fields (Fig. 3 b—not confluent; Fig. 4 confluent) to represent the natural variability of this species, but he may have described C. (H.) gendrei based on more than one species. This species may stand as a replacement for N. brasilianum (= Selfcoelum brasilianum n. comb.) as type species (see Kanev et al. 2002a). No oral or ventral sucker described—Dubois (1959).
description: Published as part of Dronen, Norman O. & Blend, Charles K., 2015, Updated keys to the genera in the subfamilies of Cyclocoelidae Stossich, 1902, including a reconsideration of species assignments, species keys and the proposal of a new genus in Szidatitreminae Dronen, 2007, pp. 1-100 in Zootaxa 4053 (1) on page 37, DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4053.1.1, http://zenodo.org/record/237117