Ecology of the ectoparasite infrapopulations in the nasal cavities of Leporinus lacustris (Anostomidae) from the upper Paraná River floodplain, Brazil - DOI: 10.4025/actascibiolsci.v31i2.3309

Abstract

The present study shows an ecological analysis of the ectoparasite infrapopulations in the nasal cavities of Leporinus lacustris from the Upper Paraná River floodplain, Brazil. Two species of ectoparasites were found: the monogenetic Rhinoxenus arietinus and the copepod Gamispatulus schizodontis. The parasitism indexes were collated with the standard length, sex and relative condition factor (Kn) of the hosts. The differences in these indexes among different types of collection environments (lentic, lotic and semilotic) were also tested. The susceptibility of larger-size males to the infection by monogenean of the nasal cavities in relation to females of similar sizes is suggested. However, the sex was not a determining factor for abundance and prevalence. The parasites seem not to exert a negative effect on the hosts’ health, therefore the Kn of parasitized and unparasitized fishes did not differ statistically, and Kn was not statistically associated with the abundance of parasites. In relation to the environments, it is possible that those with lesser water flow speed favor the transmission and establishment of larger infrapopulations of copepods in the nasal cavities of Leporinus lacustris