Abstract
Southern Africa is considered one of the world's 'hotspots' for the diversity of cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes), with currently 204 reported species. Although numerous literature records and treatises on chondrichthyan fishes are available, a paucity of information exists on the biodiversity of their parasites. Chondrichthyan fishes are parasitised by several groups of protozoan and metazoan organisms that live either permanently or temporarily on and within their hosts. Reports of parasites infecting elasmobranchs and holocephalans in South Africa are sparse and information on most parasitic groups is fragmentary or entirely lacking. Parasitic copepods constitute the best-studied group with currently 70 described species (excluding undescribed species or nomina nuda) from chondrichthyans. Given the large number of chondrichthyan species present in southern Africa, it is expected that only a mere fraction of the parasite diversity has been discovered to date and numerous species await discovery and description. This review summarises information on all groups of parasites of chondrichthyan hosts and demonstrates the current knowledge of chondrichthyan parasites in South Africa. Checklists are provided displaying the host-parasite and parasite-host data known to date.
Highlights
Southern Africa is considered one of the world’s ‘hotspots’ for the diversity of cartilaginous fishes (Chondrichthyes), with currently 204 reported species
The aim of this study is to provide an overview of parasite infection of elasmobranchs and holocephalans and comprehensive information on the current knowledge from South Africa
In South Africa, only a mere fraction of the expected parasite diversity has been reported from chondrichthyan hosts and available chondrichthyan parasite records are based on information collected from 90 species, including 24 unidentified ones
Summary
The diversity, biogeography and biology of cartilaginous fishes in southern Africa is reasonably well documented. Few scientists dedicated much of their scientific career to the exploration of parasitic copepods, only a fraction of potential chondrichthyan hosts have been investigated and the species currently known from South Africa might represent only the ‘tip of the iceberg’. Ten out of the 19 known orders of cestodes infect chondrichthyans, with a total of 1,044 species most cestodes parasitise elasmobranchs as definitive hosts (Caira and Jensen 2017). Cestodes currently constitute the second largest group of known chondrichthyan parasites in South Africa, merely 18 of 204 potential host species have been examined for cestode infections. The aim of this study is to provide an overview of parasite infection of elasmobranchs and holocephalans and comprehensive information on the current knowledge from South Africa. Parasite-host and host-parasite checklists are provided for the first time, summarising records of chondrichthyan and parasite species, their classification and the respective literature
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