Type host: Rhinolophus hipposideros (Bechstein, 1800), Lesser horseshoe bat.

Other hosts: None reported to date.

Type locality: EUROPE: France.

Geographic distribution: EUROPE: France.

Description of oocyst: Oocyst shape: spheroidal to subspheroidal; number of walls: 1; wall thickness: not given; wall characteristics: smooth, colorless; L x W: 16-22 (spheroidal forms) and 16-18 x 13-15 (subspheroidal forms); L/W ratio: 1.0; M: absent; OR: absent; PG: absent. Distinctive features of oocyst: small size, and lack of M, OR, and PG.

Description of sporocysts and sporozoites: Sporocyst shape: ovoidal; L x W: not given; L/W ratio: not given; SB: absent; SSB: absent; PSB: absent; SR: present; SR characteristics: coarse granules that occupy the middle 2/3 of sporocyst and obscure SP (line drawing); SP: obscured by SR. Distinctive features of sporocyst: lare SR filling most of sporocyst.

Prevalence: 3/15 (20%).

Sporulation: Exogenous. Oocysts sporulated in 13 d in 0.5% aqueous (w/v) chromic acid solution at 15 and 25 C.

Prepatent and patent periods: Unknown.

Site of infection: Epithelial cells of the upper 1/3 of the small intestine.

Endogenous stages: Meronts were spheroidal, 5-7 wide, with a highly chromophilic, large nucleus and produced 8-10 banana-shaped merozoites, 5-6 x 1.5. Microgametocytes were spheroidal, 10-12 wide, and produced many curved (bow-shaped) microgametes, 2-2.5 long. Mature macrogametocytes also were rounded, 10-12 wide, with a vesicular nucleus 3-4 wide. Lavier (1924) said that fertilization occurred before the oocyst wall is laid down.

Materials deposited: None.

Remarks: Lavier (1924) first named and later described the oocyst and several of the endogenous stages. His description of the sporulated oocyst, however, is lacking in many details (e.g., there are no mensural data for the sporocysts), but he did provide line drawings of both the oocyst and the endogenous stages.

References: Lavier (1924); Levine and Ivens (1981).