Parasites of the deep-sea smelt Bathylagus euryops (Argentiniformes: Microstomatidae) from the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone (CGFZ)

The deep-sea smelt Bathylagus euryops, caught in July 2004 at the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone (CGFZ) of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (North Atlantic), was studied for metazoan parasites and diet composition. A total of 86 specimens with standard lengths between 6.4 and 22.1 cm (mean 13.6 cm) were examined...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Marine Biology Research
Main Authors: Busch, M. W., Klimpel, Sven, Sutton, T., Piatkowski, Uwe
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Taylor & Francis 2008
Subjects:
Mid-Atlantic Ridge
North Atlantic
Online Access:https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/6443/
https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/6443/1/2008%20Busch_etal_MarBiolRes4.pdf
https://doi.org/10.1080/17451000801907963
Description
Summary:The deep-sea smelt Bathylagus euryops, caught in July 2004 at the Charlie-Gibbs Fracture Zone (CGFZ) of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (North Atlantic), was studied for metazoan parasites and diet composition. A total of 86 specimens with standard lengths between 6.4 and 22.1 cm (mean 13.6 cm) were examined. The parasite fauna consisted of five species: three Digenea, one Cestoda and one Nematoda. The predominant parasites were Lecithaster sp. (Digenea) and an unidentified bothriocephalidean cestode. The only nematode, Anisakis sp., occurred with a low prevalence. Bathylagus euryops at CGFZ serves as final host for the three digeneans, and as intermediate host for the cestodes and Anisakis sp. Stomach content analysis revealed a mesozooplankton crustacean diet, while 95.3% of the stomachs contained unidentified tissue.

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