Ecologia da comunidade de metazoários parasitos do tamboatá Hoplosternum littorale (Hancock, 1828) (Siluriformes: Callichthyidae) do rio Guandu, Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Abstract

One hundred specimens of tamboatá Hoplosternum littorale (Hancock, 1828) from Guandu River, (22°48'32''S, 43°37'35''W), Rio de Janeiro state, Brazil were studied as for their metazoan parasites during May 2004 and February 2005. A total of eight species of metazoan parasites were collected and identified. Kalipharynx sp. was the most prevalent species (61.0%), followed by Glossiphoniidae gen. sp. (20%) and the progenetic metacercariae of Herpetodiplostomum caimancola (Dollfus, 1935) (11%). No parasite species showed significant correlation between the total body length of the host and their abundance. The sex of the hosts influenced the abundance of Kalipharynx sp., being the males the most parasited. The mean parasite species' richness showed low values (1.59 ± 1.09 (0-3)). The parasite species presented an aggregated distribution pattern.