First description of pumpkinseed Lepomis gibbosus (L.) as a possible second intermediate host for Triaenophorus nodulosus (Pallas, 1781) (Cestoda, Pseudophyllidea) in Germany

Within the scope of a comparative study on Triaenophorosis in perch (Perca fluviatilis L.) 67 pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus L.) from Lake Schreckensee in south-western Germany were examined. Prevalence of the tapeworm Triaeno phorus nodulosus (Pallas, 1781) in pumpkinseed was 38.8%. Plerocercoids wer e detected in liver tissue, either as free larvae or encapsulated. Capsules often contained caseous material with damaged or destroyed plerocercoids. Differences in infestation between pumpkinseed and perch, the main second i ntermediate host, were observed. This is the first report about pumpkinseed as a possible second intermediate host for T, nodulosus in Germany.