Reference: Bfol. Bull., 155: 383-394. (October, 1978) THE LIFE-CYCLE AND TAXONOMIC RELATIONS OF LINTONIUM VIBEX (LINTON, 1900) STUNKARD AND NIGRELLI, 1930 (TREMATODA: FELLODISTOMIDAE) 1 HORACE W. STUNKARD American Museum of Natural History, Central Park ircst at 79th Street, New York. Linton (1900) described Distonnnn t'ibc.v from the northern puffer, Sphcroides 'niaciilatns (Bloch and Schneider), family Tetraodontidae, at Woods Hole, Massa-chusetts. The worms were from the pharynx, attached to the wall around the entrance to the ventral pouch. He noted that they resembled Distomum fcllis Olsson, 1866. a species that was transferred to Fcllodistommn Stafford, 1904 by Nicoll, (1909). Linton (1901) again reported D. vibc.r from S. niacnlatns and noted that the digestive tracts of the fishes contained small crabs, amphipods, both lamellibranch and univalve mollusks. annelids, seaweeds, and sand. This account of the food-habits was confirmed by Welsh and Breder (1922), who gave a detailed account of the life-history of S. niacnlatns, taken at Atlantic City, New Jersey. Linton (1905) reported D. I'ibe.v from 5". niaciilatns at Beaufort, North Carolina; in this paper he described intestinal diverticula parallel to the pharynx, an error which he corrected later (1940). Linton (1910) described trematodes of fishes taken at Dry Tortugas, Florida in the summers of 1906, 1907 and 1908. It is sig-nificant that 6". macnlatiis and D. ribe.v were not reported. In a review, Linton (1940) gave additional information concerning D. ribe.r, including the first and only report of the parasite in a host other than S. niaciilatns. The record of collec-tions at Woods Hole, made primarily by Yinal N. Edwards, contains the entry (p. 42), "From oldwife, Batistes rctnla. five, 8 September, 1903." It is the only report of infection in this host from the examinations of more than forty years. Sphcroidcs niaciilatns is a southern species ; its occurrence at Woods Hole is irregu-lar and sporadic; it may not appear until midsummer and in 1915 Edwards re-corded no D. vibcx in the examination of 149 puffers between May and September, although in other years the incidence of infection reached 50^ in July and August. Stunkard and Nigrelli (1930) extended the description of D. ribc.r, corrected errors in Linton's accounts, and erected a new genus, Lintonhtin, for the species. The genus was assigned to the subfamily Fellodistominae Nicoll, 1909, family Fellodistomidae Nicoll, 1915; the history and naming of the family w r as discussed by Stunkard and Nigrelli and their decision was endorsed by Yamguti (1971, p. 69). During June to October, 1938, 1939, and 1940, Nigrelli and Atz (1943) studied the biometry and parasites of S. niaciilatns in Sandy Hook Bay, New Jersey. They examined 294 fishes, 2 to 24 cm in length and reported on their protozoan, hel-minthic and crustacean parasites. Incidence of infection was correlated with date of collection, age, size, and sex of hosts. Infection with L. I'ibe.r increased with age of fishes and a total of 1003 specimens were taken. The authors predicated 1 Investigation supported by NSF DEB-74-14534-A01. 383
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