Abstract
The objective of the present study was to analyze the seasonality of parasitic helminths of Leporinus macrocephalus from fish farms in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil, and their parasitism rates. Between June 2014 and March 2015, 200 specimens were sampled from two fish farms: one with a semi-intensive system and the other with an extensive system (100 fish from each farm: 50 during the dry season and 50 during the rainy season). Fifteen species of parasites were found, with seasonal variations of some according to the farming system. In the semi-intensive fish farm, there was greater prevalence of infection during the dry season. Also, Urocleidoides paradoxus, Procamallanus (Spirocamallanus) inopinatus, Goezia leporini and Rhabdochona (Rhabdochona) acuminata presented differences in their parasitism rates between the seasons. In the extensive fish farm, no variation in the prevalence of infection was observed between the seasons and two species Tereancistrum parvus and G. leporini demonstrated differences only regarding the mean intensity of infection. The data presented here may help fish farmers to understand the parasite dynamics of L. macrocephalus in farming systems during the dry and rainy seasons in the state of Acre.
Highlights
Fishery resources are abundant in the Amazon region, depletion of natural stocks of some species of fish, together with availability of water resources and increased demand for fish, hasBraz
The objective of the present study was to analyze the seasonality of parasitic helminths of Leporinus macrocephalus from fish farms in the municipality of Cruzeiro do Sul, Acre, Brazil, and their parasitism rates
In the extensive fish farm, no variation in the prevalence of infection was observed between the seasons and two species Tereancistrum parvus and G. leporini demonstrated differences only regarding the mean intensity of infection
Summary
Fishery resources are abundant in the Amazon region, depletion of natural stocks of some species of fish, together with availability of water resources and increased demand for fish, hasBraz. The Amazon region presents clear seasonality: a rainy season that usually occurs between November and April, and a dry season from May to October (FIGUEROA & NOBRE, 1990) At this latitude, there is little variation in temperature and intensity of sunlight (SILVA et al, 2008). The mean temperature is above 30 °C, which is a factor that can cause stress among fish, favoring multiplication of parasites (MARINHO et al, 2013) Abiotic variations, such as high temperatures and low levels of oxygen can influence the abundance of some species of parasites or the abundance of intermediate hosts (TAVARES-DIAS et al, 2001; SCHALCH & MORAES, 2005; MARINHO et al, 2013; ZAGO et al, 2014; JERÔNIMO et al, 2016)
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