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Metazoan parasites of the Indian mackerel, Rastrelliger kanagurta (Scombridae) of Visakhapatnam coast, Bay of Bengal

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Abstract

The metazoan parasite fauna of the Indian mackerel Rastrelliger kanagurta of Visakhapatnam coast, Bay of Bengal comprised 15 species including three species of Monogenea, seven species of Digenea and five species of Crustacea. Digeneans were the dominant members in the parasite spectrum while infections with ectoparasitic monogeneans and crustaceans were rare. The digeneans Opechona bacillaris and Lecithocladium angustiovum which occurred with high prevalence and mean intensity are the typical parasites of the mackerel. The parasitic fauna in general is found to be a reflection of the planktonivorous diet of the host. Except for two species of digeneans, Lecithocladium angustiovum and Aponurus laguncula, all the remaining species of metazoans showed narrow specificity to R. kanagurta, indicating a high degree of host specialization. The parasitological data may prove useful for differentiating stocks of R. kanagurta.

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Acknowledgement

Our grateful thanks are due to the Ministry of Environment and Forests for providing funds to carry out this work under the AICOPTAX programme.

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  1. Department of Zoology, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, 530 003, India

    R. Madhavi & T. Triveni Lakshmi

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  1. R. Madhavi
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  2. T. Triveni Lakshmi
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Correspondence to R. Madhavi.

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Madhavi, R., Triveni Lakshmi, T. Metazoan parasites of the Indian mackerel, Rastrelliger kanagurta (Scombridae) of Visakhapatnam coast, Bay of Bengal. J Parasit Dis 35, 66–74 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12639-011-0028-5

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