DESCRIPTION OF ANOPLODICUS SPARI (MONOGENEA: ANOPLODISCIDAE) AND THE TAXONOMIC POSITION OF ANOPLODISCIDAE

The current study described the whole worm and male copulatory organ of Anoplodicus spari collected from Acanthopagrus schlegeli off Daya Bay, South China Sea. Our specimens of Anoplodicus spari from South China Sea was basically consistent with the description of Ogawa et al. (1981) except for the slight difference in the position of the base and distal end of copulatory tube. The proximal end of the copulatory tube lied beneath the accessory piece and the distal end protruded from the three rami in our specimens, while the distal end extended from the rami and curved in the specimen of Ogawa (1981). The partial 28S rDNA sequences (C1-D2 domain) of Anoplodicus spari and other related groups were used to study the taxonomic position of Anoplodiscidae. The results showed the independent position of Anoplodiscidae, a valid family belonging to the clade of Tetraonchinea, Dactylogyridea. Anoplodiscidae and Tetraonchidae were a sister group in the phylogenetic tree, and this clade was distantly different from Udonellidae and Microbothriidae.