Diversity of helminth fauna in teleost fish within the Tver region

• Main Authors: Drozdova, Lyudmila, Shemyakin, Georgy, Demin, Fyodor
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Zenodo 2022
• Subjects: Trematodes; Cestodes; helminthiasis; commercial fish; Vazuz; Tver region; Sibirica
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7700592

Helminths affect multicellular animals of all types except echinoderms and sponges. In particular, within Volga reservoirs, the infestation of commercial fish by Pseudophyllidea larvae, Opisthorchis felineus (Rivolta, 1884) metacercaria, and other parasitic worms has increased significantly. This poses a threat of growing infestations in humans. The Vazuz Reservoir is a part of the large Vazuz hydrotechnical system connected with the Moscow River and is actively used for water supply to the Western and Southwestern districts of the capital. The investigated impounding reservoir is located on the border of the Tver, Moscow and Smolensk Regions. Most of the population in these regions actively promotes fishing as a hobby. Helminth fauna monitoring is relevant due to the active catch fish consumption by the population. The purpose of this study was to assess epizootic helminthiasis within the Zubtsovsky District of the Tver Region due to the special activity of using the Vazuz Reservoir by professional and amateur fishers. The objects of the study were three commercial fish species widely represented in this water area: river perch Perca fluviatilis Linnaeus, 1758, common roach Rutilus rutilus (Linnaeus, 1758), and common bream Abramis brama Linnaeus, 1758. The fish were caught at two points of the Vazuz Reservoir right branch and frozen for further study in the laboratory of the Zoology Department of the Russian State Agrarian University – Moscow Timiryazev Agricultural Academy. An incomplete helminthological dissection revealed representatives of the flatworm type at various stages of development, which were subsequently identified. The fish in the carp family, namely Abramis brama , had the highest prevalence in percentage terms. The authors gratefully acknowledge S.A. Goriunkov for consulting and technical support of this work.