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The occurrence of Sphaerostoma bramae (Digenea: Allocreadiidae) in the roach from the Worcester-Birmingham canal

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2009

N. A. Evans
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology and Comparative Physiology, The University of Birmingham, P.O. Box 363, Birmingham B15 2TT, England

Abstract

Two hundred roach (Rutilus rutilus) were examined over a twelve-month period to provide information concerning the occurrence of Sphaerostoma bramae. Infection levels were high during the autumn and winter and at this time of year the parasite population was composed almost exclusively of immature parasites. Maturation was rapid in the spring but was accompanied by a decrease in the infection level. In late summer, after egg-laying, losses due to the death of spent parasites began to be replaced by the recruitment of immature parasites and this recruitment reached its peak in the autumn and winter. The annual cycle of occurrence and maturation is discussed in relation to fluctuating environmental variables and the feeding behaviour of the roach.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1977

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