CONTRIBUTION TO THE TAXONOMY OF THE FAMILY CAMPULIDAE ODHNER, 1926 (DIGENEA) BY MEANS OF A MORPHOMETRIC MULTIVARIATE-ANALYSIS

Digeneans of the family Campulidae occur exclusively in marine mammals , particularly in cetaceans. Their taxonomy is confused, being based o n adult morphology only. We used a multivariate discriminant analysis of morphometric data to provide new evidence on the taxonomy of the Ca mpulidae. Measurements of 217 specimens from 21 species of all seven g enera of the family were taken. The percentage of specimens correctly assigned into their own species was 96.3%. The first three discriminan t functions accounted for most of the variation between the species, w hich were grouped together in suprageneric groups along the first and the second function. The ordination pattern observed conforms partly w ith the established taxonomy of the Campulidae. Variation along the fi rst discriminant function can be interpreted as a gradient of the vite lline extension and the maximum width to length ratio. This function s eparates three groups of species, corresponding to the Hunterotrematin ae, Orthosplanchninae and Campulinae-Lecithodesminae. The last two sub families are separated along the second axis, the Lecithodesminae havi ng longer bodies and suckers than the Campulinae. This study also prov ides some evidence at the generic and specific level.