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What makes a fish a suitable host for Monogenea in the Mediterranean?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 June 2009

A. Caro
Affiliation:
Laboratoire d'Hydrobiologie Marine et Continentale (UMR CNRS 5556) Université de Montpellier 2, 34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France
C. Combes*
Affiliation:
Centre de Biologie et Ecologie Méditerranéenne et Tropicale (UMR CNRS 5555), Université, 66860 Perpignan Cedex, France
L. Euzet
Affiliation:
Laboratoire de Parasitologie Comparée (UMR CNRS 5555), Université de Montpellier 2, 34095 Montpellier Cedex 5, France: and Station Méditerranéenne de l'Environnement Littoral, 1 Quai de la Dorade, 34200 Sète, France
*
* Author for correspondence.

Abstract

Monogenean richness of marine fish is highly variable among host families and species. On the basis of 160 fish species selected because their parasite fauna was considered as ‘adequately’ investigated, an attempt was made to find associations between parasite richness and various characters of the hosts. No clear correlation was found with maximal size, although the smallest species (less than 10cm) seem to never harbour monogeneans. Correlations were found with nectonic, migrating and gregarious behaviours. However, taxonomy of fish appears to be extremely important as a determinant of monogenean richness. In the absence of a satisfactory phylogeny of hosts, no attempt was made to control the analysis for phylogeny. However, removing some families characterized by a high parasite richness (sparids, sciaenids, mugilids) shows that the association with gregariousness holds, whereas the others tend to disappear.

Type
Research Papers
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1997

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