COPEPOD ECTOPARASITES OF HYPOPHTJIALMICHTHYS MOLITRIX
FROM FISH HATCHERY PIROWAL (KHANEWAL,
PUNJAB)
Zahida Tasawar, Muhammad Faisal Shahzad and C.S.Hayat1
Institute of Pure and Applied Biology, B. Z University,
Multan;
1Department of
Veterinary
Parasitology,
University
of Agriculture, Faisalabad-38040,
Pakistan
Abstract
From February 1999 to January 2000, 120 silver carps (Hypophthalmichthys
molitrix) were collected at Pirowal Fish Hatchery Khanewal (Punjab,
Pakistan)
and were examined for copepod ectoparasites. Out of 120, only 12 specimens (10%)
of silver carps were infested. Six species of
Lernaea (L.) recorded were
L. cyprinacea
Linnaeus, 1761; L. polymorpha
Yu, 1938; L. oryzophila Monod,
1932; L. lophiaru Harding, 1950 and
L. ctenopharyngodonis and
L. arcuata Soejanto, 1965. The overall
prevalence was highest for L. cyprinacea
(9.16%) followed by L. polymorpha
(6.66%) L. lophiara (3.33%),
L. oryzophila (2.5%)
L. ctenopha (2.5%) and
L. arcuata (1.6%).
L. polymorpha and L.
cyprinacea were the most abundant species than the other ectoparasites in
multiple infestations. Parasites were not found in the smallest and the largest
fishes and number of parasites decreased as the weight of the fish increased.
Key words:
Silver carp, fish, Lernaea spp., copepod ectoparasites
