Diversity of metazoan parasites in Colossoma macropomum (Serrasalmidae) from the lower Jari River, a tributary of the Amazonas River in Brazil

ABSTRACT This study investigated the diversity of metazoan parasites in Colossoma macropomum from the Jari River, in the eastern Amazon, northern Brazil. We collected a total of 4966 parasites from 34 fishes, including monogeneans (Anacanthorus spathulatus, Mymarothecium boegeri, Notozothecium janauachensis and Linguadactyloides brinkmanni), nematodes (Spectatus spectatus larvae, Contracaecum sp. larvae andProcamallanus (Spirocamallanus) inopinatus), digeneans (Cladorchiidae metacercariae), acanthocephalans (Neoechinorhynchus buttnerae), crustaceans (Ergasilus turucuyus, Argulus multicolor, Perulernaea gamitanae and Braga patagonica), mites and leeches. The dominance was of monogenean species, found in the gills of the hosts. The parasites exhibited high aggregate dispersion, except Contracaecum sp. and P. (S.) inopinatus, that showed uniform and random dispersion, respectively. The species richness of parasites varied from 1 to 9, the Brillouin diversity index from 0 to 1.52, evenness from 0 to 0.63 and the Berger-Parker dominance index from 0.39 to 1.00. Abundance of parasites was not influenced by host length, but there was significant correlation with host body weight in some cases. The parasite community was characterized by low species richness and moderate diversity, with a predominance of ectoparasites with high prevalence and abundance, as well as the presence of endoparasites in the larval stage. RESUMO Este estudo investigou a diversidade de parasitos metazoários em Colossoma macropomum do Rio Jari, na Amazônia oriental, norte do Brasil. Foram coletados um total de 4.966 parasitos, incluindo monogeneas (Anacanthorus spathulatus, Mymarothecium boegeri, Notozothecium janauachensis e Linguadactyloides brinkmanni), nematoides (larvas de Spectatus spectatus, larvas de Contracaecum sp. eProcamallanus (Spirocamallanus) inopinatus), digeneas (metacercárias de Cladorchiidae), acantocéfalos (Neoechinorhynchus buttnerae), crustáceos (Ergasilus turucuyus, Argulus multicolor, Perulernaea gamitanae e Braga patagonica), ácaros e sanguessugas. A dominância foi de espécies de monogeneas, encontradas nas brânquias dos hospedeiros, e houve elevada dispersão agregada dos parasitos, exceto Contracaecum sp., que teve dispersão uniforme e P. (S.) inopinatus, que mostrou dispersão randômica. A riqueza de espécies de parasitos variou de 1 a 9, o índice de diversidade de Brillouin de 0 a 1,52, a uniformidade de 0 a 0,63 e o índice de dominância de Berger-Parker de 0,39 a