Batrachotrematidae Explained

Batrachotrematidae is a family of trematodes in the order Plagiorchiida.

Genera

The following genera are described severally, and by Rizvi, et al. (2012):^[1]

• Batrachotrema Dollfus & Williams, 1966
• Opisthioparorchis Wang, 1980^[2]

The following additional genera are described by Cribb (2005),^[3] but are not discussed in Rizvi, et al. (2012)^[1] or other studies:

• Gigantodiscum Wang, 1980^[2]
• Rhacophotrema Uchida, Itagaki & Inoue, 1980^[4]

Cribb (2005)^[3] noted that most species of Batrachotrematidae are poorly described, and many seem to be different from the type-species of the genera to which they belong. A lack of molecular studies prevent adequate classification of the species;^[1] Cribb (2005)^[3] describes the split between African and Asian species, which parasitise different types of frogs, as possibly warranting a separate distinction at the family level. The lack of clarity regarding the definition of the family, and the lack of molecular and life-cycle studies on the putative species, makes Batrachotrematidae one of the worst-defined digenean families.

Notes and References

1. Rizvi, A. N., Bursey, C. R. & Bhutia, P. T. (2012). Three new species of Digenea (Batrachotrematidae) in Nanorana minica (Anura, Dicroglossidae) from Uttarakhand, India. Acta Parasitologica, 57(2), 154–159.
2. Wang, P. (1980). Report on some trematodes from amphibians and reptiles in Fujian, South China. Fujian Shida Xueba, 2, 81–92.
3. Cribb, T. H. (2005). Family Batrachotrematidae Dollfus and Williams, 1966. In Bray, R., Gibson, D. & Jones, A. (Eds.), Keys to the Trematoda. Vol. 2 (pp. 437–442). London, UK: CABI Publishing and The Natural History Museum.
4. Uchida, A., Itagaki, H. & Inoue, H. (1980). Studies on the amphibian helminths in Japan, 7. Rhacophotrema itagakii n. g. et n. sp. and Opisthioglyphe japonicus n. sp. (Digenea: Omphalometridae) from frogs. Japanese Journal of Parasitology, 29(2), 109–113.