PREVALENCE OF ECHINOPHALLUS WAGENERI (BOTHRIOCEPHALIDEA) IN BLACKFISH (CENTROLOPHUS NIGER) OF WESTERN LIGURIAN SEA

The blackfish Centrolophus niger (Perciformes: Centrolophidae) is a mesopelagic fish living offshore in depth range from 40 to 1000 m. Juveniles occur in surface waters while adults live deeper. Feeding of blackfish is not selective, including mainly small fish, squids and large pelagic crustaceans. Among the parasitofauna reported in blackfish, tapeworms of the order Bothriocephalidea are considered very common. One of them, Echinophallus wageneri (Cestoda: Echinophallidae) is a large worm, up to 50 cm long and 2 cm wide, with a flat strobila folded along longitudinal axis (convex dorsally and concave ventrally). The aim of this study is to define the prevalence of E. wageneri in a C. niger population of the Ligurian Sea. From March to April 2015, 42 specimens of blackfish were caught by local fisherman from the sea off the coast of Imperia (Italy). The visceral package of each blackfish was tied at its ends and placed in bags whit an identification code. In the laboratory, the samples were examined fresh or after freezing at -20°C. Parasites were fixed in ethanol (70%) and subjected to identification on the basis of morphological characters. The presence of E. wageneri was detected in all the samples examined with an intensity of infection ranging between 2 and 48 (MI=16,6). Several other species of not yet identified cestodes were found in coinfection with E. wageneri. These results provide preliminary data about the prevalence of E. wageneri in the blackfish, species with an increasing interest in local fish market.