BioOne.org will be down briefly for maintenance on 17 December 2024 between 18:00-22:00 Pacific Time US. We apologize for any inconvenience.
How to translate text using browser tools
1 October 2001 INITIAL INFECTION, DISTRIBUTION, AND SEASONAL OCCURRENCE OF HOFERELLUS GILSONI (MYXOZOA) WITHIN A POPULATION OF ANGUILLA ROSTRATA (ANGUILLIDAE) IN SOUTHERN NOVA SCOTIA
Jason Melendy, David K. Cone
Author Affiliations +
Abstract

Recently transformed elvers of Anguilla rostrata, entering the mouth of the East River in the Timber/Connaught Lake watershed (Nova Scotia) from the sea in mid-May, did not develop infections of the urinary bladder parasite Hoferellus gilsoni (Myxozoa) after nearly 3 mo in captivity. However, 40% of elvers collected from the mouth of the river in early June and 80% in late June exhibited patent infections by mid-August. It is speculated that given this initial level of infection, the summer run of elvers (estimated to be 208,000–963,000 individuals annually) represents a significant upstream dispersal of spores. Infections in yellow eel, which has a limited home range, probably contribute to spore dispersal within the home range and downstream through spore drift. Sporogenesis occurred in samples of yellow eel collected over an 8-mo period from April to November. Eel length was similar in 3 widely separated sampling locations in the watershed. Prevalences at these localities were 44, 36, and 57% in April and, by June, reached 76, 70, and 90%, respectively. Prevalences remained near the June levels until sampling ceased in November 1998. Studies on captive fish suggest that H. gilsoni can overwinter in the eel. Data from the study indicate that immediate infection of young elvers entering the system, effective spore dispersal, and a seasonally extended sporogenesis all contribute to the ubiquitous presence of the parasite in the eel population.

Jason Melendy and David K. Cone "INITIAL INFECTION, DISTRIBUTION, AND SEASONAL OCCURRENCE OF HOFERELLUS GILSONI (MYXOZOA) WITHIN A POPULATION OF ANGUILLA ROSTRATA (ANGUILLIDAE) IN SOUTHERN NOVA SCOTIA," Journal of Parasitology 87(5), 957-960, (1 October 2001). https://doi.org/10.1645/0022-3395(2001)087[0957:IIDASO]2.0.CO;2
Received: 12 October 2000; Accepted: 1 February 2001; Published: 1 October 2001
RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS
Get copyright permission
Back to Top