Ecology of the genus Acanthochondria Oakley (Copepoda parasitica)

Among the parasites of the branchial chamber of the flatfishes of the Eastern North Atlantic, those belonging to the genus Acanthochondria (fam. Chondracanthidae, tribe Cyclopiformes) occupy a conspicuous place. Both their relatively large size and their abundance, render them easily noticeable even...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom
Main Author: Kabata, Z.
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1959
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0025315400006056
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0025315400006056
Description
Summary:Among the parasites of the branchial chamber of the flatfishes of the Eastern North Atlantic, those belonging to the genus Acanthochondria (fam. Chondracanthidae, tribe Cyclopiformes) occupy a conspicuous place. Both their relatively large size and their abundance, render them easily noticeable even to a casual observer, in spite of the protective nature of their environment. It is a reflexion on the state of our knowledge of marine parasites that, not withstanding their accessibility, very little is known about the animals of this genus. The genus Acanthochondria was erected by Oakley (Leigh-Sharpe and Oakley, 1927) for the chondracanthids, which until then were included in Chondracanthus Delaroche, 1811, and which differed from the other members of that genus in the absence of the cephalic barbs and the dorsal and ventral processes. They were also characteristic in their preference for the flatfish hosts.