Abstract
Galaxias maculatus (puyen chico) es una especie de pez presa que tiene un rol importante en las redes troficas de los lagos de la Patagonia. Estudios previos, a escala local, muestran que la riqueza y la composicion de las comunidades componentes de parasitos metazoos de G. maculatus en un grupo de pequenos lagos someros en los alrededores del lago Nahuel Huapi, estan afectadas por la composicion del ensamble de peces nativos en cada lago. Los objetivos del presente estudio fueron: a) caracterizar la comunidad de helmintos de G. maculatus incluyendo datos de 28 lagos andinos de las provincias de Rio Negro y Neuquen, y b) identificar los factores bioticos y abioticos de estos lagos que afectan la presencia y la prevalencia de las diferentes especies de helmintos que parasitan a este pez presa abundante y ampliamente distribuido en la Patagonia. El analisis indica que las comunidades de helmintos de las diferentes poblaciones de G. maculatus varian de acuerdo a la vertiente, al area lacustre, a la altitud y al ensamble de peces del lago.
Highlights
Some ecological studies on fish parasites, mainly in marine fishes, have attempted to relate host features such as body size, habitat, distributional range, and feeding and schooling habits with parasite diversity (Rodhe 2010; Timi et al 2010)
The analysis indicates that the parasite community of different populations of G. maculatus varies according to the basin, lake area, altitude and the fish assemblage of the lake
Since Patagonian Andean lakes vary in their physical features and fish assemblages, it could be expected that these factors be reflected in the richness and composition of the parasite communities of G. maculatus populations
Summary
Some ecological studies on fish parasites, mainly in marine fishes, have attempted to relate host features such as body size, habitat, distributional range, and feeding and schooling habits with parasite diversity (Rodhe 2010; Timi et al 2010). The helminth communities of fish show considerable spatial variation among lakes of the same region For this reason, the main aim of studies on the ecology of helminths parasitizing freshwater fish have involved the recognition of patterns and identification of processes affecting richness (Carney & Dick 1999; Barger & Esch 2001; Barger 2006), distribution (Kennedy 1990), diversity (Kennedy et al 1986), and abundance of parasite communities (Kennedy et al 1986). Other studies have stressed out that lake differences in size, isolation, and fauna can reduce the similarity among component
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