Vol. X, No. 5.] Cestode Fauna of British India and Ceylon. 143 

 [N.S.] 



Most Cestode parasites have particular hosts and they will 

 not mature in any other. Amongst Elasmobranchs however the 

 same species of Cestode may occur in many species of this group 

 of fishes. The same is true of some parasites from birds and 

 mammals, both circumstances being partly explained by the 

 manner of specific feeding. 



The hosts concerned in harbouring the cystic stages of by 

 far the vast majority of Cestodes have yet to be determined, 

 and in this connection nothing has been done as yet in India. 



Up to a short time ago the number of species of Cestoda 

 in the Indian Museum did not exceed twenty. The attempt is 

 now being made to extend the collection so as to include at least 

 all the principal Indian forms. General field collecting is being 

 carried on extensively. Nearly all animals which die in the 

 Zoological Gardens, Calcutta, are examined, and the Veterinary 

 Colleges in the Punjab and in Madras have also promised to 



supply specimens. 



The following is a general summary of the Cestoda recorded 



from India and Ceylon to date. 



I. From Invertebrates. Nothing. Although larval stages 

 have been seen in Mytilus bullata by the writer 



II. From Fish. 



(a) From Ceylon. By Shipley and Hornell, 



Genera 22, Species 56. 



By Hornell, „ 1, >> 2, 



By Southwell, „ 2, „ 19. 



(6) ,, India. By Southwell, ,, 6, ,, 6- 



Total ,, 31, „ 83. 



Of the above, the following were new, genera 16 and species 74. 

 In addition to the above, about 20 cystic forms from Teleosts 

 have also been recorded. 



The collection made in Ceylon by the writer, comprises the 

 major part of the genera and species tabulated above. Until 

 the material has been worked out anatomically it is impossible 

 to say precisely how many genera and species are represented 

 in the collection of the Indian Museum. 



The principal forms obtained from fish which are worthy 

 of special attention are the following: — 



A. An Amphilina magna, Southwell, from the coelom ot 

 Diagramma crassispinum , Ceylon Pearl Banks. It measured 

 over 250 mm. long, the largest hitherto recorded being A. 



liguloidea, 80 mm. 



B. Ligula s implicit sima, from Bengal carp. It lives in 

 the body cavity and the adult form occurs in fish-eating birds. 

 It is reported that within recent years, carp brought to the 

 Calcutta market were occasionally so heavily infected that 

 people refused to buy them. The parasites often measure 



