Acanthocephalan Cystacanths from Flatfish (Order Pleuronectiformes) in Tropical Australian Waters

Abstract

Cystacanths of 4 species of Acanthocephala are reported for the first time from various species of fish belonging to the Order Pleuronectiformes from waters of the western Gulf of Carpentaria and the central coast of Queensland, Australia: Corynosoma cetaceum Johnston and Best, 1942 (Family Polymorphidae), Serrasentis cf. sagittifer (Linton, 1889) and Rhadinorhynchus sp. (Family Rhadinorhynchidae), and Gorgorhynchoides sp. (Family Isthmosacanthidae). Approximately 32% of the 515 individual fish belonging to 24 species were infected with at least 1 cystacanth. Serrasentis cf. sagittifer was the most-commonly encountered, infecting a total of 18 species of fish across both regions. Gorgorhynchoides sp. infected 7 fish species in the Gulf of Carpentaria only while Rhadinorhynchus sp. (1 fish species) and C. cetaceum (7 fish species) were only found on the central coast of Queensland. Most fish were infected with a single cystacanth of any species. There was no relationship between total length of fish and intensity of infection for any species. This paper provides information on parasite infections in fish hosts commonly caught as by-catch and outlines the need for further studies on these fish to be able to determine sustainability of such fish stocks.

Acanthocephalan parasites of the flounder species Paralichthys isosceles, Paralichthys patagonicus and Xystreurys rasile from Brazil

“…Serrasentis sagittifer and C. cetaceum were recently reported from paralichthyid fish at higher prevalences than those found in the present study. Barton & Smales (2015) investigated six species of the genus Pseudorhombus Bleeker, 1862, from Australian waters, and found cystacants of S. cf. sagittifer (prevalecne of 36.32%) in fish from the western Gulf of Carpentaria, and S. cf.…”

Integrative taxonomy of Serrasentis gibsoni n. sp. (Acanthocephala: Isthmosacanthidae) from flatfishes in the Gulf of Mexico

“…is the first Serrasentis species described from marine teleosts of the order Pleuronectiformes. Barton and Smales (2015) reported cystacanths of Serrasentis cf. sagittifer from six families belonging to the order Pleuronectiformes (i.e., Bothidae, Citharidae, Cynoglossidae, Paralichthyidae, Psettodidae, and Soleidae).…”

“…Fonseca et al (2019) reported juvenile specimens of Serrasentis sagittifer from the intestines of two flatfish species (Paralichthyidae), i.e., Paralichthys isosceles Jordan, 1891 and Paralichthys patagonicus Jordan, 1889. Barton and Smales (2015), Barton et al (2018), and Fonseca et al (2019) mentioned that the flatfish species are paratenic hosts in the life cycle of S. sagittifer. Amin and Heckmann (2021) reported juveniles and adults of S. sagittifer from eight paratenic (from five fish families, one of which belongs to the family Paralichthyidae) and one definitive host species in the Arabian Gulf, and they discussed their world-wide distribution and comparative morphometrics.…”

“…Serrasentis gibsoni n. sp. from A. quadrocellata, C. chittendeni, S. gunteri, and S. papillosum, from the Northwest Atlantic Ocean, is the seventh described species of Serrasentis, not including the species with dubious taxonomic descriptions, according to Barton et al (2018); five valid Serrasentis species, namely S. indica, S. lamelliger, S. manazo, S. nadakali, and S. synagrisi, were described from the Indian subcontinent (Gupta and Jain 1985;Bhattacharya 2007;Amin 2013;Barton and Smales 2015;Amin and Heckmann 2021), and a sixth valid species, S. sagittifer with a cosmopolitan distribution, was redescribed from Australian waters (Barton et al 2018).…”

“…Kennedy (2012) mentioned that crustaceans are intermediate hosts of various acanthocephalan taxa. Barton and Smales (2015) and Barton et al (2018) mentioned that the Pleuronectiformes flatfish prefer a diet of crustaceans (e.g., shrimp and crabs). Preferences for crustaceans (e.g., copepods, amphipods, shrimps, and isopods) were also reported for A. quadrocellata, C. chittendeni, S. gunteri, and S. papillosum (Fraser 1971;García-Abad et al 1992;Sanchez-Gil et al 1994 Several species of crustaceans from the GoM are sympatric with the definitive host species of Serrasentis gibsoni n. sp.…”