Morphological and genetic characterisation of Centrorhynchus clitorideus (Meyer, 1931) (Acanthocephala: Centrorhynchidae) from the little owl Athene noctua (Scopoli) (Strigiformes: Strigidae) in Pakistan

Centrorhynchus Luhe, 1911 is a large genus of acanthocephalans mainly parasitic in various strigiform and falconiform birds. Some species of Centrorhynchus have not been adequately described. Here, the detailed morphology of C. clitorideus (Meyer, 1931) was studied using light and, for the first time, scanning electron microscopy, based on newly collected specimens from the little owl Athene noctua (Scopoli) (Strigiformes: Strigidae) in Pakistan. Partial sequences of the 18S and 28S nuclear ribosomal RNA genes and the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit 1 (cox1) of C. clitorideus were generated for the first time. No nucleotide variation was detected for the partial 18S and 28S regions, but 3.30% of intraspecific nucleotide divergence was found for the cox1 gene. Phylogenetic analyses based on 28S and 18S sequence data showed that C. clitorideus formed a sister relationship with Centrorhynchus sp. MGV-2005 or Centrorhynchus sp. MGV-2005 + C. microcephalus (Bravo-Hollis, 1947), respectively.