First steps to restructuring the problematic genus Lasiotocus Looss, 1907 (Digenea: Monorchiidae) with the proposal of four new genera

2020

Lasiotocus Looss, 1907 is the largest genus within the Monorchiidae Odhner, 1911, with 52 species currently considered valid. Species belonging to this genus exhibit wide morphological variation and it is likely that many of them belong in other genera; however, testing the validity of the group has been hampered by a lack of molecular sequence data, especially for the type-species. Here, we report the first DNA sequences for Lasiotocus mulli (Stossich, 1883) Odhner, 1911, the type-species of the genus, and only the sixth Lasiotocus species to be sequenced. Sequences were generated for three ribosomal DNA markers, the ITS2, 18S and 28S regions, and for one mitochondrial DNA marker, the cox1…