Published online by Cambridge University Press: 06 April 2009
1. The ecological relationships and life history of a Diplostomulum type of strigeid metacercaria encountered in several fresh-water fishes of Andhra Pradesh are described.
2. The development of the adult strigeid in the pond heron and cattle egret and structure and development of the miracidium have been traced.
3. The adult individuals are identical with Diplostomum ketupanensis Vidyarthi, 1937. It is suggested that D. heronei described by Srivastava (1954) may be a synonym of D. ketupanensis.
4. Attention is drawn to the possible relationship between D. heronei and the metacercaria Diplostomulum pigmentata Singh, 1956, which in its turn appears to be similar to the Diplostomulum in the present study.
We thank Sri S. Nagaraja Rao of Fisheries Department, Andhra Pradesh, for his kind help and co-operation.