Geographic Variation in Incidence of Trematode Parasites of American Plaice ( Hippoglossoides platessoides ) in the Northwest Atlantic

• Published in: Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada
• Main Author: Scott, J. S.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Science Publishing 1975
• Subjects: General Medicine; Northwest Atlantic
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/f75-068; http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/f75-068

The digenetic trematodes Steringotrema ovacutum, Zoogonoides viciparus, Derogenes varicus, Lecithaster gihbosus, Fellodistomum furcigerum, and Stenakron vetustum were common in American plaice (Hippoglossoides platessoides) from the southern Gulf of St. Lawrence, Scotian Shelf, and northeast Gulf of Maine in the summers of 1971 and 1972. Levels of incidence of the trematodes in different areas within the region are compared. Steringotrema ovacutum, Z. viviparus, and F. furcigerum may be useful as biological indicators in plaice in the Northwest Atlantic.