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The taxonomy, vertical distribution and zoogeography of some monogenea infecting eastern Pacific fishes
Abstract
A survey of monogeneans from fishes from the eastern Pacific Ocean was made, the correlation between the depth zone from which a fish is captured and the probability of that fish being infected with monogeneans was tested, and the geographical distribution of selected monogeneans was analyzed. Between April 1967 and March 1980, 1,589 fishes belonging to 84 families, 175 genera, and 250 species from the Pacific Ocean off central and southern California, Baja California, Mexico, and the Gulf of California, Mexico, were examined for mongeneans. The fishes were taken from the sublittoral, epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, and bathyal depth zones. Forty-three species of monogeneans representing 14 families were collected from 49 species of fishes. Thirteen new species and four new genera were described. Twenty-three new host records and 14 new localities were established. Monogenean infections by depth zone were: sublittoral fishes, 19.8%; epipelagic, 9.0%; mesopelagic fishes, 2.2%; bathypelagic fishes, 0.0%; bathyal fishes, 4.0%. An analysis of these data showed a statistically significant (X$\sp2$(4) = 101.20, p $<$.0001) decrease in the prevalence of Monogenea as depth increases. The composition of the deep-sea monogenean fauna was limited to Diclidophoroidea and differed markedly from that of the shallow water, which was mainly comprised of Capsaloidea and Microcotyloidea. The absence of Monogenea in the bathypelagic zone supports the hypothesis that parasite reproductive potential is too low to overcome the volume of water. Mapping the geographical distributions of monogeneans obtained in this study and their previously described congeners resulted in patterns that demonstrated a close affinity of the eastern Pacific monogenean fauna to that of the Carribean fauna, confirming a connecting waterway prior to the formation of the Central American Isthmus. The study represents the first attempt to show (1) that monogenean distribution patterns can be used to demonstrate presence of a biogeographical boundary separating the Panamic Province from the California Province, and (2) that the Tethys Sea served as a possible dispersal route for monogeneans of marine fishes.
Subject Area
Zoology|Oceanography|Ecology
Recommended Citation
Payne, Raphael Richard, "The taxonomy, vertical distribution and zoogeography of some monogenea infecting eastern Pacific fishes" (1991). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI9211494.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI9211494