Occurrence of Contracaecum bancrofti larvae in fish in the Murray–Darling Basin
| Autor: | Shokoofeh Shamsi, Lesley R. Smales, A. Stoddart, Skye Wassens |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2018 |
| Předmět: |
0106 biological sciences
0301 basic medicine Retropinna semoni Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum 030106 microbiology Population Zoology Misgurnus 010603 evolutionary biology 01 natural sciences Fish Diseases 03 medical and health sciences Rivers Ascaridoidea Prevalence Animals Parasite hosting education education.field_of_study biology Australia Fishes General Medicine biology.organism_classification Ascaridida Infections Nematode Larva Freshwater fish Animal Science and Zoology Parasitology Smelt |
| Zdroj: | Journal of Helminthology. 93:574-579 |
| ISSN: | 1475-2697 0022-149X |
| DOI: | 10.1017/s0022149x1800055x |
| Popis: | There is a paucity of information on the diversity and occurrence of freshwater fish parasites in Australia. This study investigates the distribution and occurrence of a parasitic nematode of the genusContracaecumin freshwater fish from south-eastern Australia. Fish (n= 508) belonging to nine species and eight families were collected from eight wetlands associated with the Murrumbidgee River floodplain in the southern Murray–Darling Basin and subjected to laboratory examination. Third-stage nematode larvae were found in eight of the nine fish species. The exception was the fly-specked hardeyhead (Craterocephalus stercusmuscarum), although only one specimen of this species was examined. Nematode larvae were identified asContracaecum bancroftiusing a combined morphological and molecular approach. The parasite was most prevalent in weather loach (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus; 34.8%) and Australian smelt (Retropinna semoni; 21.4%), followed by carp (Cyprinus carpio; 9.5%), of which the former and latter are non-native species.Contracaecumprevalence differed between locations, with Two Bridges having the highest number of infected fish. This may be due to the higher number of suitable host species collected at these localities.Contracaecumspp. are parasites with low host specificity that have also been reported in Australian marine fish, humans and piscivorous birds. The high parasite prevalence in the two abundant non-native fish species in the region suggests that they act as a suitable host for this endemic parasite, resulting in the increase in the parasite population. It would be interesting to study host–parasite interactions in this area, especially if introduced fish populations declined dramatically in the attempt to eradicate them or control their population. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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