New Species of Trematodes from the Gills of Illinois Fishes

Abstract

This investigation began in the fall of 1933 as a general survey of the parasites of the Centrarchidae of Champaign County, Illinois. After two years of collecting, an attempt was made to identify the collected specimens. Due to coagulation of adherent mucus and subsequent adhesion of specimens to the inner surfaces of the vials, no Gyrodactyloidea were found in the fluid poured from containers in which they were originally placed. New material was collected and identification of parasites in a live state was begun, together with work on the problem of perfecting a suitable technique adequate for research on this group. Examination revaled several undescribed species of gill trematodes of the subfamily Tetraonchinae, twelve of which are treated in this publication. The problem has been restricted to the monogenetic forms from Illinois fishes.