Biodiversidade das comunidades endoparasitárias de peixes forrageiros do reservatório de Três Marias, alto rio São Francisco, Brasil

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the parasite species of eight forage fish species from the Três Marias reservoir; to clarify some aspects about their parasite faunas through the quantification of the parasite parameters (prevalence, intensity and , abundance); to determine diversity indices of each endocommunity; to compare the endoparasite communities using qualitative and quantitative methods; and to investigate which biotic and abiotic factors were relevant in the endoparasite communities structuration. A total of 492 fish (Characiformes, Characidae) were collected in the Três Marias reservoir (18º12'59"S, 45º17'34"W), upper São Francisco river, State of Minas Gerais, between May 2003 and July 2010. Of these total, 44 specimens were of Astyanax bimaculatus (Linnaeus, 1758), 76 of Astyanax fasciatus (Cuvier, 1819), 70 of Bryconops affinis (Günther, 1864), 64 of Hemigrammus marginatus Ellis, 1911, 41 of Moenkausia costae (Steindachner, 1907), 51 of Orthospinus franciscensis (Eigenmann, 1914), 63 of Tetragonopterus chalceus Spix & Agassiz, 1829 and 83 of Triportheus guentheri (Garman, 1890). Were found 21 endoparasite species among the eight communities – Digenea: Creptotrema creptotrema Travassos, Artigas & Pereira, 1928, Magnivitellinum simplex Kloss, 1966, unidentified species of Digenea (adults), Austrodiplostomum sp. and Clinostomum marginatum (Rudolphi, 1819) Braun, 1899 (metacercariaes); Eucestoda: unidentified species of Cyclophyllidea (metacestode) and unidentified species of Proteocephalidae (plerocercoids); Nematoda: Procamallanus saofranciscencis Moreira, Oliveira & Costa, 1994, Rhabdochona spA., Spinitectus rodolphiheringi Vaz & Pereira, 1934 (adults), Contracaecum sp., Hysterothylacium sp., Goezia sp., unidentified species of Cucullanidae, Procamallanus sp., Procamallanus (Spirocamallanus) sp., Spiroxys sp., Rhabdochona sp. and Cystidicoloides fischeri (Travassos, Artigas & Pereira, 1928) (larvas); Myxozoa: Henneguya sp. (plasmodium with spores); and Protozoa (Apicomplexa): Calyptospora sp. (cysts with oocysts). Seven of these species were more frequent between the eight hosts: plerocercoids of Proteocephalidae, P. saofranciscencis, Contracaecum sp., Hysterothylacium sp., Spiroxys sp., Rhabdochona sp. and Henneguya sp.. The A. bimaculatus was the richest (16 endoparasite species) and the T. guentheri was the most diverse (Shannon-Wiener = 0,86) communiity. The H. marginatus was the less rich (nine taxa) and diverse community (Shannon-Wiener = 0,03). The most qualitative similarity was between the A. bimaculatus and A. fasciatus communities, while the most quantitative similarity occurred between the H. marginatus and O. franciscensis communities. The structure of parasite communities was mainly influenced by five factors: biotic – fish species, size and diet; and abiotic: water electrical conductivity and fish collection period. However, the fish diet seems to be the major determining composition of the parasite communities of forage fish from the Três Marias reservoir.