Review of Mothocya Costa in Hope 1851 (Crustacea: Isopoda: Cymothoidae) from southern Africa with the description of a new species

Three species of Mothocya are reported from the east coast of southern Africa: Mothocya plagulophora (Haller, 1880) from Maputo, Mozambique, from the gills of Hemiramphus far (Forsskål, 1775); Mothocya renardi (Bleeker, 1857) from diverse localities in South Africa and Mozambique, from the hosts Strongylura leiura (Bleeker, 1850) and Tylosurus choram (Rüppell, 1837); and Mothocya affinis sp. nov. from Sodwana Bay, South Africa, from the gills of Hyporamphus affinis (Günther, 1866). Mothocya affinis sp. nov. is characterised by relatively small size (maximum 16 mm); large, wide coxae on pereonite 7 that overlap the pleon; uropods that do not extend past the pleotelson posterior margin; produced anterolateral margins on pereonite 1; and a twisted pleon and pleotelson. Mothocya katoi Nunomura, 1992 and Mothocya toyamaensis Nunomura, 1993 are both transferred to the genus Ceratothoa, with M. katoi being placed into junior synonymy with Ceratothoa guttata (Richardson, 1910). Irona ogcocephalus Avdeev & Avdeev, 1974 and I. callionymus Avdeev & Avdeev, 1974 are both transferred to Elthusa, and Irona trillesi Rokicki, 1986 is synonymised with Mothocya longicopa Bruce, 1986. A key to the south-western Indian Ocean species of Mothocya is given, and a table summarising recent and new nomenclatural acts in the genus is provided

Cymothoa hermani sp. nov. (Isopoda, Cymothoidae, Crustacea), a parasitic isopod, collected off the Zanzibar coast, Tanzania from the mouth of a parrotfish (Scaridae)

Cymothoa hermani sp. nov., a buccal fish-parasitic isopod is described from off Unguja Island, Zanzibar, from the buccal cavity of the marbled parrotfish, Leptoscarus vaigiensis. Cymothoa hermani sp. nov. is characterised by the unique bulbous ornamentation on pereonite 1, anterolateral angles on pereonite 1 rounded and produced past frontal margin of cephalon, and pereopods with long and slender dactyli. There are no other species of Cymothoa known from parrotfishes. This description increases the number of known Cymothoa from the southwestern Indian Ocean to four

Pasture Management to Improve Dry Matter Intake

Agricultural producers are constantly looking for ways to maximize returns while reducing input costs. On dairy operations, a move from confinement feeding to pasture grazing offers the potential to reduce costs associated with harvest and storage of feed. In such a transition, producers sometimes report a decline in milk production and growth of livestock—both of which can strongly correlate to dry matter intake. Fortunately, dry matter intake is something that can be influenced by management practices. In this publication, we discuss the pasture management practices to improve dry matter intake

Guest Editorial; The North-West University (NWU) Zoology centennial special issue

No Abstract

Marine fish parasitology in South Africa: history of discovery and future direction

Almost 200 years have passed since the first description of a marine fish parasite from South Africa. It is therefore an opportune time to look back, take stock of and reflect on the history of discovery within this field and, based on what we know, propose the future direction for research. The aim of this paper is hence to provide some background information on the growth in our knowledge and understanding of the major groups of marine fish parasites and to give an account of how pioneers, such as Barnard, Stebbing, Fantham and Kensley, led the age of discovery and exploration in marine fish parasitology in South Africa. The paper also presents a brief overview of the contributions made by internationally acclaimed parasitologists, such as Rodney Bray and Angela Davies, to our knowledge of marine fish parasites from this region and also to acknowledge the role played by the South African parasitologists, especially over the past 30 years. A rich base of fundamental knowledge is available in South Africa and this research field continues to grow. The prognosis for the future of marine parasitology in South Africa is good; however, as we continue to acquire and record new information about species, it is proposed that future research should be more focused on the lesser studied groups, such as monogeneans, protists and Myxozoa, as these have received uneven attention to date. In addition, it is proposed that the scope of research on marine fish parasitology be broadened to include ecological and applied aspects, using modern technique

Description of a new gnathiid, Afrignathia multicavea gen. et sp. n. (Crustacea: Isopoda: Gnathiidae), from South Africa

A new genus and species of gnathiid isopod, Afrignathia multicavea gen. et sp. n., is described from material collected during the 1960s and 1970s in False Bay, offshore between Still Bay and Mossel Bay, and off Cape Point. This gnathiid does not conform to any other known species, having morphological characteristics not seen in the other 11 recognized genera. Features making the genus unique include a pylopod consisting of only one article, a mandible with two rows of unequal teeth on the blade and apex, and cephalosome appendages that could be maxillae 1 (maxillules), which are usually absent in all known male gnathiids. This species is also characterized by clusters of sensory pits scattered over the cephalosome and pereon.Key words: Gnathiidae, Afrignathia, description, morphology, taxonomy.

Marine fish parasitology in South Africa: history of disco very and future direction

Almost 200 years have passed since the first description of a marine fish parasite from South Africa. It is therefore an opportune time to look back, take stock of and reflect on the history of discovery within this field and, based on what we know, propose the future direction for research. The aim of this paper is hence to provide some background information on the growth in our knowledge and understanding of the major groups of marine fish parasites and to give an account of how pioneers, such as Barnard, Stebbing, Fantham and Kensley, led the age of discovery and exploration in marine fish parasitology in South Africa. The paper also presents a brief overview of the contributions made by internationally acclaimed parasitologists, such as Rodney Bray and Angela Davies, to our knowledge of marine fish parasites from this region and also to acknowledge the role played by the South African parasitologists, especially over the past 30 years. A rich base of fundamental knowledge is available in South Africa and this research field continues to grow. The prognosis for the future of marine parasitology in South Africa is good; however, as we continue to acquire and record new information about species, it is proposed that future research should be more focused on the lesser studied groups, such as monogeneans, protists and Myxozoa, as these have received uneven attention to date. In addition, it is proposed that the scope of research on marine fish parasitology be broadened to include ecological and applied aspects, using modern techniques.Keywords: biodiversity, fish parasites, marine, South Afric

Parasite diversity and community structure of translocated Clarias gariepinus (Burchell) in South Africa: Testing co-introduction, parasite spillback and enemy release hypotheses

Clarias gariepinus (Burchell) is one of several freshwater fish species that have been translocated beyond its natural geographic range in South Africa. The present study investigated the parasitic communities of two translocated populations (one in the Riviersonderend River, Western Cape and the other from the Great Fish River, Eastern Cape) as well as its native source population from Gariep Dam, Free State. A total of nine, seven, and eight parasitic taxa were found to parasitise various organs of C. gariepinus from the three populations, respectively. The diversity and abundances of parasitic species in the two translocated populations were similar, but distinct community assemblages were observed. Parasite community composition from the Great Fish River was similar to that of the source population from Gariep Dam, whereas the parasitic community from C. gariepinus in the Riviersonderend River was distinct from that of Gariep Dam. This, together with the introduction history into the Western Cape, suggests that translocated C. gariepinus is sourced from various systems across South Africa, or that suitable intermediate hosts are present in the recipient ecosystems to sustain host-specific co-introduced parasitic taxa of C. gariepinus. In total, the resilience of 11 specialist parasite species of C. gariepinus is demonstrated in their persistence upon co-introduction into the two novel environments with their host, and support for the enemy release hypothesis is confirmed in the loss of known parasite taxa in translocated populations. The presence of the co-invasive fish lice Argulus japonicus Thiele, 1900 is reported from C. gariepinus in Gariep Dam and the Asian tapeworm Schyzocotyle acheilognathi (Yamaguti, 1934) was found from translocated C. gariepinus in the Riviersonderend River, Western Cape and lastly, a suspected case of parasite spillback from an unknown native host is reported

Alien freshwater fish parasites from South Africa: Diversity, distribution, status and the way forward

The global translocation and introduction of freshwater fish into non-native regions has created the perfect opportunity for the co-introduction of their parasites. In a recent review on non-native freshwater fish introductions in South Africa, 55 fishes were reported as introduced into novel environments in South Africa, with 27 alien and 28 extralimital. However, the parasites potentially co-introduced by these non-native fishes have received much less attention from researchers than the hosts themselves. Thus far, the only attempts at summarising our knowledge on the diversity of introduced freshwater fish parasites in this region dates back to the 1980s when only four parasite species were considered to be alien, with a further eight species as doubtful. Over the last thirty years, more records have been added and this paper aims to provide an up-to-date review of our knowledge on the diversity, distribution, status (co-invasive or co-introduced) and the direction for future studies on introduced freshwater fish parasites in South Africa. Here we consider seven species (four ciliates, and one cestode, copepod and branchiuran respectively) as confirmed co-invaders, and 16 species (one flagelate, four ciliates, one cestode and ten monogeneans) as co-introduced. In addition, six species (three ciliates, two monogeneans and one copepod) previously recorded as invasive are deemed to be of uncertain status, and one ciliate is removed from the list of known invasive parasites from this region. It is further proposed that future research should focus on extralimital co-introductions, especially in the Eastern and Western Cape regions of South Africa where more than half of the fishes present are introduced species. It is also recommended that all new records of introduced parasites and new distribution records of known invasive parasites should include the deposition of voucher specimens in museums and, as far as possible, include molecular confirmation of its identification. Keywords: Alien invasive, Fish parasites, Co-introduction, Co-invasiv