Marine leech Ozobranchus margoi parasitizing loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Abstract

Marine leech AbstractThis paper reports the finding of several Ozobranchus margoi (Annelida: Hirudinea) parasitizing a loggerhead turtle (Caretta caretta) that was found in the municipality of Tavares, state of Rio Grande do Sul, southern Brazil. Since this parasite is considered to be a vector of chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV-5), the leeches collected were tested for the presence of this virus. All the specimens were negative on PCR analysis. Although O. margoi is considered to be a common sea turtle parasite, this is the first official record describing collection of this parasite from a loggerhead turtle in southern Brazil, within the country's subtropical zone. This finding draws attention to the presence of this parasite and to the risk of leech-borne infectious diseases among turtles found along the coast of southern Brazil.Keywords: Ozobranchus margoi, Hirudinea, leech, loggerhead turtle, ectoparasite. ResumoEste artigo relata a descoberta de vários exemplares de Ozobranchus margoi (Annelida Hirudínea) parasitando uma tartaruga cabeçuda (Caretta caretta) encontrada no município de Tavares, Rio Grande do Sul, sul do Brasil. Uma vez que esse parasito é considerado vetor do chelonid herpesvirus 5 (ChHV 5), as sanguessugas foram testadas para a presença deste vírus. Todas as amostras foram negativas pela análise de PCR. Embora o O. margoi seja considerado um parasito comum de tartarugas marinhas, este é o primeiro registro oficial que descreve a coleta deste parasita em uma tartaruga cabeçuda no sul do Brasil, dentro da zona subtropical do país. Este achado chama a atenção para a presença deste parasita e para o risco de sanguessugas transmitirem doenças infecciosas em tartarugas no litoral sul do Brasil.

Long-term survey of sea turtles (Caretta caretta) reveals correlations between parasite infection, feeding ecology, reproductive success and population dynamics

“…Out of 90 randomly selected leeches, we successfully retrieved 67 and 86 sequences from18S rDNA and NADH respectively, representing all specimens (Supplementary Data File 2 and 3 ). All sequences confirmed turtles are infected with the Ozobranchus margoi leech—a sea turtle specific sanguivorous parasite 52 .…”

First record of the marine turtle leech (Ozobranchus margoi) on hawksbill turtles (Eretmochelys imbricata) in the inner granitic Seychelles

“…Geographically there have been reports of O. margoi from Florida (Davies 1978 ; Davies & Chapman 1974 ; McGowin et al 2011 ; Sawyer, Lawler & Oversrteet 1975 ; Truong 2014 ; Truong & McGowin 2011 ), North Carolina (Schwartz 1974 ), Hawaii (Balazs 1980 ), Barbados (Truong 2014 ), Brazil (Peralta et al 2003 ; Rodenbusch et al 2012 ; Truong 2014 ), Puerto Rico (Bunkley-Williams et al 2008 ), Uruguay (Cordero 1929 ), Adriatic Sea (Piccolo & Manfredi 2003 ; Scaravelli, Affronte & Costa 2003 ), Italy (Apathy 1890 ), Mediterranean sea (Insacco et al 2000 ), Tunisia (Karaa et al 2011 ), South Africa (Hughes, Bass & Mentis 1967 ), India (Sanjeeva Raj 1959 ), Japan (Oka 1927 ), Taiwan (Cheng-Tsung & I-Jiunn 2013 ; Tseng, Leu & Cheng 2017 ) and Australia (Loop, Miller & Limpus 1995 ; Richardson 1969 ). However, there are no published reports documenting the occurrence of O. margoi on turtles in the inner granitic Seychelles.…”