Cercopithifilaria johnstoni ( Mackerras, 1954 ) Bain, Baker & Chabaud, 1983

Spratt, David M., 2011, New records of filarioid nematodes (Nematoda: Filarioidea) parasitic in Australasian monotremes, marsupials and murids, with descriptions of nine new species 2860, Zootaxa 2860 (1), pp. 1-61 : 45-46

Cercopithifilaria johnstoni ( Mackerras, 1954) Bain, Baker & Chabaud, 1983

Dipetalonema johnstoni Mackerras, 1954, pp. 51–54 , figs. 1–4, pl. 1 figs. 1–3 from Isoodon macrourus (as Isoodon obesulus )) Mt. Nebo, Queensland., Mackerras 1962, pp. 421–422, pl. 2 figs 5–6, figs 27–28, ( Perameles nasuta ); Spratt & Varughese 1975, pp. 24–33, figs. 24–31, 33–36 ( Rattus lutreolus , Rattus fuscipes , Sarcophilus harrisii ); Obendorf, 1979, p. 869.

Breinlia johnstoni (Mackerras) Yeh, 1957, p. 202 .

Dipetalonema lutreoli Mackerras, 1962 . pp. 406–409, figs. 7–11 ( Rattus lutreolus )

Dipetalonema (Chenofilaria) johnstoni (Yeh) Chabaud & Bain, 1976, p. 383 .

Cercopithifilaria johnstoni (Mackerras) Bain, Baker & Chabaud, 1983, p. 618 ; Spratt & Haycock 1988, p. 1087 ( Perameles gunnii , Isoodon obesulus , Petauroides volans , Uromys caudimaculatus ); Spratt et al. 1991, p.12, 20, 23–26, 32, 70 ( Ornithorhynchus anatinus ); Smales 1997, pp. 510, 514–516; Smales, 2004, p. 73, ( Melomys cervinipes ).

Type host. Isoodon macrourus (Marsupialia: Peramelidae ).

Other hosts. Isoodon obesulus , Perameles gunnii Gray , Perameles nasuta Geoffroy (Marsupialia: Peramelidae ), Antechinus stuartii Macleay , Sarcophilus harrisii (Boitard) (Marsupialia: Dasyuridae ), Petauroides volans (Marsupialia: Pseudocheiridae ), Trichosurus vulpecula (Marsupialia: Phalangeridae ), Melomys cervinipes , Rattus fuscipes (Waterhouse) , Rattus lutreolus (Gray) , Uromys caudmaculatus (Krefft) ( Rodentia : Muridae ), Ornithorhynchus anatinus (Shaw) ( Monotremata : Ornithorhynchidae ),? Tachyglossus aculeatus (Shaw) ( Monotremata : Tachyglossidae ).

Site in host. Subcutaneous connective tissue.

Other material examined. From Ornithorhynchus anatinus: TAS : 3♂, 5♀ ( N3068 ) Moriarty; (PA 109) Georges River , St. Helens. NSW: (PA103) Queanbeyan R. 0.5 km below Googong Dam .

From Antechinus stuartii: NSW : 1♂, 1♀ ( N5249 ) Stoney Creek nr. Murrumbateman .

From Sarcophilus harrisii: TAS : 10♂, 14♀ ( N967 ) 3 animals Icena Station ; 2♀ ( N669 ) Launceston .

From Isoodon macrourus: NSW : 4♂, 10♀ ( N39 ) Tenterfield ; 1♀ (no N #) Grafton ; 1♀ ( N4166 ) Cascade ; 1♂, 1♀ (no N #) Taree. QLD : 1♂, 2♀ ( N40 ) Mt. Nebo ; 15♂, 20♀ ( N829 ) Douglas ; 1♂, 2♀ ( N1601 ) Little Moresby Creek nr. Atherton ; 1♂, 2♀ ( N1601 ) Lake Barrine nr. Atherton ; 1♂, 1♀ ( N840 ) Daintree .

From Isoodon obesulus: TAS : 4♀ ( N1359 ) Kempton ; 2♀ ( N213 ) Launceston ; 3♂, 4♀ ( N947 ) Chudleigh. WA : 5♂, 6♀ ( N4253 ) Bakers Junction .

From Perameles nasuta: NSW : 1♂, 4♀ ( N1156 ) , 1♀ ( N1218 ) , numerous ♂, ♀ ( N1173 ) , 7♂, 9♀ ( N1262 ) , 2♂, 6♀ ( N1937 ) Buckenbowra State Forest ; 1♂, 3♀ ( N246 ) Mossy Point. QLD: 1♂, 1♀ (no N #) Danbulla State Forest , Mt. Windsor Tablelands ; 1♀ (no N #) Atherton.

From Perameles gunnii: TAS : 5♂, 10♀ ( N948 ) Launceston ; 1♀ ( N919 ) Hadspen .

From Petauroides volans: NSW : 2♂ ( N411 ) , 7♂, 9♀ ( N413 ) Wee Jasper; 1♂, 2♀ ( N418 ) , 1♂, 1♀ ( N710 ) , 1♂, 3♀ ( N181 ) , 1♀ ( N396 ) Bondo State Forest ; 1♂, 1♀ (no N #) Bondi State Forest ; 3♂, 9♀ (no N #) Coolangubra State Forest ; 3♂, 3♀ (no N #) Timbillica State Forest ; 2♂, 5♀ (no N #) Nadgee State Forest . VIC : 2♀ ( N5488 ) Healesville .

From Trichosurus vulpecula: TAS : 3♂, 5♀ ( N4279 ) Launceston .

From Rattus fuscipes: VIC : 2♂, 2♀ ( N199 ) Bemm River . NSW : 2♂, 2♀ ( N1152 ) , 5♂, 9♀ ( N1157 ) , 3♂, 1♀ ( N1406 ) , 11♂, 16♀ ( N2999 ) , 3♀ ( N367 ) , 1♂, 2♀ ( N934 ) , 3♀ ( N941 ) , 12♂, 11♀ ( N2838 ), (PA 101), (PA 104) Buckenbowra State Forest ; 2♀ ( N1144 ). Ludwigs Swamp , Nadgee State Forest ; 4♂, 1♀, 1♂, 1♀, 1♂, 1♀, 1♂, 2♀, 1♀, 1♀, 1♀ Mines Rd. , Nadgee Nature Reserve. QLD : 1♂, 2♀ ( N870 ) Mt. Tamborine ; 1♂, 1♀ ( N41 ) Mt. Nebo .

From Rattus lutreolus: TAS : 1♀ ( N313 ) Launceston. NSW : 1♂ (no N #) Timbillica State Forest ; 4♂, 7♀ (no N #) Nadgee State Forest ; 1♂ (no N #) Nadgee Nature Reserve ; 1♂, 2♀ (no N #) Grafton .

From Uromys caudimaculatus: QLD : 1♀ ( N1740 ) Curtain Fig, Atherton .

Distribution and hosts. Cercopithifilaria johnstoni has the broadest host range of any filarioid known from native mammals in Australia infecting monotremes, marsupials and murids in eastern Australia with a single record from the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus , in Western Australia.

Remarks. Microfilariae of C. johnstoni occur in the lymphatic capillaries and the extravascular connective tissue of the skin of the host ( Vuong et al. 1993). Larvae and nymphs of Ixodes trichosuri , I. fecialis , I. holocyclus and I. tasmani are known intermediate hosts and vectors ( Spratt & Haycock 1988). As I. ornithorhrynchi is the only tick known to occur on the platypus, O. anatinus , it also is a likely intermediate host. Nematode morphogenesis from microfilaria to third–stage infective larva occurs only when the tick is off the host during ecdysis from larva to nymph or from nymph to adult ( Spratt & Haycock 1988). These authors reported that time to patency in experimental vertebrate host species was variable, ranging 71–135 days and duration of microfilaraemia ranged 1–786 days with a mean of 153 days. The microfilariae of C. johnstoni induce dermal and particularly ocular lesions in naturally and experimentally infected hosts similar to the lesions seen in human onchocerciasis ( Vuong et al. 1993).

Spratt and Varughese (1975) noted that the single female Dipetalonema sp. reported by Mackerras (1962) from the subcutaneous tissues of an echidna, Tachyglossus aculeatus , was probably C. johnstoni , although there has been no other record of a filarioid from an echidna and the author has not seen filarioids in this monotreme host species despite examining 48 animals from Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and Western Australia over a 40 year period. Similarly, the single records of C. johnstoni from both A. stuartii and T. vulpecula are the only records known despite numerous post mortem examinations of these common species. The highest prevalence of infection was seen in R. fuscipes 64% (25/39) at Buckenbowra State Forest near Mogo, New South Wales contrasting with a prevalence of 3% (18/603) in this host species and 1.8% in R. lutreolus at Nadgee and Timbillica State Forests south of Eden, New South Wales. Prevalence of infection in other host animal species examined by me over the above time period was as follows: O. anatinus 16.7% (3/18), S. harrisii 40% (4/10), I. macrourus 27.5% (22/80), I. obesulus 10.5% (4/38), Perameles gunnii 17.4% (4/23), P. nasuta 27.9% (12/43) and P. volans 47.9% (23/48).