A fish-parasitic isopod (Cymothoidae) on the pachyrhizodont Goulmimichthys roberti from the lower Turonian (Upper Cretaceous) Vallecillo plattenkalk, NE Mexico

Stinnesbeck, Eva Susanne; Wägele, Johann‐Wolfgang; Herder, Fabian; Rust, Jes; Stinnesbeck, Wolfgang

doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2021.105019

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 41 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…The comparatively good representation of vertebrate squamations in the fossil record ensures a wide applicability of this approach to extinct taxa. Data extracted from this novel methodological framework might be crucial to complement the records of host-parasite body fossils in association [83][84][85][86][87][88][89] and pathologies [90,91]. Still, this more anecdotal evidence has the unique potential to provide estimations of parasitic intensity or prevalence as well as information on the nature of ectoparasites and their attachment site preferences [92][93][94][95][96][97].…”

Section: (D) Concluding Remarks and Further Implicationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Grouping behaviour impacts on the parasitic pressure and squamation of sharks

Ferrón

Palacios-Abella

2022

Proc. R. Soc. B.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The evolution of grouping behaviour involves a complex trade-off of benefits and costs. Among the latter, an increase in the risk of parasitic transmission is a well-documented phenomenon that has likely promoted the evolution of defensive mechanisms in aquatic vertebrates. Here, we explore the relationship between grouping behaviour, parasitic richness (∼parasitic pressure), and the evolution of potential defensive traits in the squamation of sharks through phylogenetic, standard and zero-inflation regression models. Our results demonstrate that sharks that frequently aggregate show increased parasitic pressure, which may constitute an agent of selection. Accordingly, their squamation is characterized by large-scale crown insertion angles and low-scale coverage, which are interpreted as traits that compromise parasite attachment and survival. These traits are less evident in regions of the body and ecological groups that are subjected to high abrasive stress or increased drag. Thus, the squamation of sharks responds to a compromise between various functions, where protective and hydrodynamic roles prevail over the rest (e.g. ectoparasitic defence and bioluminescence aiding). This work establishes a quantitative framework for inferring parasitic pressure and social interaction from squamation traits and provides an empirical basis from which to explore these phenomena through early vertebrate and chondrichthyan evolution.

show abstract