ART. 13 TEEMATODE PARASITES OF MARINE MAMMALS PRICE 47 



Family RHABDIOPOEIDAE Poche, 1926 



Family diagnosis. — Body elongated, rounded at each end, convex 

 dorsally and concave ventrally. Cuticle of ventral surface armed 

 with large, curved, hooklike spines. Posterior end of body provided 

 with large cavity opening dorsally, containing a number of probos- 

 cislike, protrusible structures. Excretory pore situated in the floor 

 of the proboscid cavity; excretory vesicle with four anteriorly di- 

 rected limbs, two lateral and two median ; the lateral pair of branches 

 unite near the intestinal bifurcation and possess short lateral diverti- 

 cula; the median branches are intercecal and terminate blindly near 

 intestinal bifurcation. Oral sucker subterminal; esophagus slender; 

 intestinal ceca pass between testes and unite at posterior end of body. 

 Genital aperture situated at side of oral sucker; cirrus pouch long 

 and slender, containing a portion of seminal vesicle. Testes extra- 

 cecal, situated in the same transverse plane near the posterior end of 

 body. Ovary between testes; seminal receptacle and Laurer's canal 

 absent. Vitellaria extracecal and posttesticular. Uterus long and 

 slender, with numerous transverse loops extending beyond lateral 

 limits of the intestinal ceca; vagina as long as cirrus pouch. Eggs 

 small, provided with a long filament at each pole. Parasitic in 

 Sirenia. 



Tyfe genus. — Rhahdlopoeus S. J. Johnston, 1913. 



Genus RHABDIOPOEUS S. J. Johnston, 1913 



Generic diagnosis. — Rhabdiopoeidae : Characters of the family. 

 Type species. — Rhdbdlopoeus taylovi S. J. Johnston, 1913. 



RHABDIOPOEUS TAYLORI S. J. Johnston. 1913 



Plate 12, Figure 51 



Dexcriptioh. — Rliabdiopoeus : Body elongated and lancelike, 22 mm 

 long by 5 mm wdde; thinner anteriorly than posteriorly; dorsal 

 surface convex; ventral surface flat or slightly concave anteriorly 

 and more deeply concave i)osteriorly. The ventral surface is covered 

 with large, recurved, hooklike spines, 107/x long by 64|i, wdde at their 

 bases; they are set in a thick cuticula. Oral sucker almost circular, 

 733^ in diameter, subterminal and directed ventrally; esophagus 

 moderately long; intestinal ceca slender, united at posterior end of 

 body; small lateral ceca are present along the posttesticular por- 

 tions, but absent elsewhere along their course. A large cavity, 

 opening dorsally, is present near the posterior end of the body; 

 this cavity communicates with nine tunnel-like tubular spaces, 

 three of which are anterior and the remaining six are arranged in 



