Family OTOBOTHRIIDAE Dollfus, 1942
Introduction
The Otobothriidae are characterised by the possession of two bothridia each with a pair of lateral pits or fossettes containing elongate microtriche and an armature in which there are extra hooks or bands of hooks on the external surface of the tentacle (Campbell & Beveridge 1994). The composition of the family is currently in dispute. Palm (1995) created a new family, Pseudotobothriidae, for the species Ps. dipsacum, but this family was considered synonymous with Otobothriidae by Beveridge et al. (2000).
Few adult cestodes are described adequately within this family making a precise definition difficult. It was recommended as a genus/family requiring further study by Beveridge et al. (1999). Seven species in four genera are recorded currently for Australia.
General References
Beveridge, I., Campbell, R.A. & Jones, M.K. 2000. New records of the cestode genus Pseudotobothrium (Trypanorhyncha : Otobothriidae) from Australian fishes. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 124: 151-162
Beveridge, I., Campbell, R.A. & Palm, H. 1999. Preliminary cladistic analysis of the cestode order Trypanorhyncha Diesing, 1863. Systematic Parasitology 42: 29-49
Campbell, R.A. & Beveridge, I. 1994. Order Trypanorhyncha Diesing, 1863. pp. 51-148 in Khalil, L.F., Jones, A. & Bray, R.A. (eds). Keys to the Cestode Parasites of Vertebrates. Wallingford, UK : Commonwealth Agriculture Bureaux International 751 pp.
Palm, H. 1995. Untersuchungen zur systematik von Rüsselbandwürmern (Cestoda Trypanorhyncha) aus atlantischen Fischen. Berichte aus dem Institut für Meereskunde, Kiel 275: 1-238