The nematodes of the genus Syncuaria Gilbert, 1927 are parasites of birds of the orders Pelecaniformes, Ciconiiformes, and Podicipediformes. Eleven species are considered valid in this genus, however, two species, Syncuaria buckleyi (Ali, 1957) Wong, Anderson & Bartlett 1986 and Syncuaria squamata (Linstow, 1883) Wong, Anderson & Bartlett, 1986 are parasites of birds of the genus Phalacrocorax Brisson, 1760. Between 1999 and 2003, 47 Neotropical Cormorants, Phalacrocorax brasilianus (Gmelin, 1789) were collected at Lago Guaíba, Municipality of Guaíba, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Eigth of these birds were infected with S. squamata. The prevalence and the mean intensity of infection were 8.5% (8 of 47) and 2.5 helminths/host, respectively. This communication extends the known geographical distribution of nematodes of the genus Syncuaria to Brazil.
Helminths; taxonomy
