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Black-spot syndrome in Caribbean fishes linked to trematode parasite infection (Scaphanocephalus expansus)

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Abstract

Despite the evidence that diseases have increased in marine taxa, parasites remain underrepresented in studies of marine ecology. Recently, observations of black-spot syndrome (BSS) in Caribbean fishes, especially ocean surgeonfishes, Acanthurus tractus (Poey, 1860), have been reported, although its cause(s) has remained conjectural. We investigated the etiology of BSS and whether the pathology was functionally and consistently associated with particular infections. By examining the patterns of BSS among reef fishes in Bonaire, we show that observed dermal spots are the encysted stages (metacercariae) of the heterophyid trematode Scaphanocephalus expansus (Creplin, 1842). Metacercariae were detected within ten species of fishes, with loads ranging from 1–315 per fish. These represent the first published accounts of the genus Scaphanocephalus in the Caribbean and are all new host records. Molecular analysis of sequences identified the infection as a heterophyid, while morphological examinations and comparisons with archival specimens confirmed the species identity as S. expansus. Field-based estimates of BSS by scuba divers and subsequent video analysis correlated positively with parasite counts from necropsy. No such correlation was observed between BSS and metacercariae of a second trematode genus, Bucephalus. The consistent link between host burdens of S. expansus and BSS highlights the potential for low-cost and low-impact assessments in fish populations, including the use of images from citizen scientists and public databases. Taken together, these results help establish the foundation for future investigations into the pathology, geographic distribution, life cycle, and ecological consequences of BSS.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge the assistance of accomplished divers Astrid Verstappen, Mark Tsagaris, and Dr. Aldo Turco in specimen collection. Remarkable efforts by Lisa Kram, Ashely Nowak, and Andrew Patton to identify a gastropod intermediate host were unfortunately unsuccessful. We thank Tyler Achatz (University of North Dakota) and Tawni Riepe (University of Colorado) for technical help, as well as two anonymous reviewers and the editors, Dr. Morgan Pratchett and Dr. Michael Berumen, for feedback helpful in improving the manuscript. Finally, we are grateful to the financial support provided by a fellowship to the David and Lucile Packard Foundation and grants from the National Science Foundation (DEB 1149308) and National Institutes of Health (RIO GM109499).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, 76203, USA

    Zachary F. Kohl

  2. Chamberlain University, Irving, TX, 75063, USA

    Zachary F. Kohl

  3. Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, 80309, USA

    Dana M. Calhoun, Katie L. Leslie & Pieter T. J. Johnson

  4. CIEE Research Station, Kralendijk, Bonaire, Caribbean Netherlands, The Netherlands

    Franziska Elmer & Rita B. J. Peachey

  5. Institute for Sustainable Technology, Kralendijk, Bonaire, Caribbean Netherlands, The Netherlands

    Rita B. J. Peachey

  6. Department of Biology, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, 58202, USA

    Vasyl Tkach

  7. HelmWest Laboratory, Missoula, MT, 59801, USA

    John M. Kinsella

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Kohl, Z.F., Calhoun, D.M., Elmer, F. et al. Black-spot syndrome in Caribbean fishes linked to trematode parasite infection (Scaphanocephalus expansus). Coral Reefs 38, 917–930 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00338-019-01819-3

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