Metazoan parasite fauna of detritivorous and omnivorous fishes from Amapá Lake, in western Brazilian Amazon

Authors

  • Luciano Pereira Negreiros Instituto Federal do Acre
  • João Victor Couto Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Parasitologia, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Pampulha
  • Marcos Tavares-Dias Embrapa Amapá https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8376-1846

Abstract

Abstract Despite being an important component of the freshwater ecosystems and an important factor controlling wild fish populations, Amazonian fish parasites have been poorly studied. Here, we analyzed the fauna of metazoan parasites from 10 detritivorous and omnivorous fish species from Amapá Lake in the western Amazon. Of 159 fish specimens examined, 73.6% were parasitized by one or more species of metazoan parasites. A total of 5,260 parasites (24 Monogenea, 14 Nematoda, 10 Digenea, 2 Acanthocephala, and 6 Crustacea) were identified. Aggregated dispersion pattern of parasites was observed. There was a predominance of endohelminth species that presented a similar pattern regarding the level of component communities (i.e., a low species number, low diversity and dominance of a single species, mainly the digeneans and nematodes in their larval stages). Five species of parasites presented correlation with the body size of the hosts. In the fish community, the presence of endoparasites in the larval and adult stages suggests that these are intermediate, paratenic and definitive hosts, reflecting their detritivorous or omnivorous feeding habits. The trophic level and diet had an influence on the structuring of endohelminth communities and infracommunities. Lastly, 38% of the metazoan parasite species were new records for examined hosts.

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Published

2024-01-01

How to Cite

Negreiros, L. P., Couto, J. V., & Tavares-Dias, M. (2024). Metazoan parasite fauna of detritivorous and omnivorous fishes from Amapá Lake, in western Brazilian Amazon. Biota Neotropica, 24(1). Retrieved from //www.biotaneotropica.org.br/BN/article/view/2044

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