ISSN 1809-127X (online edition) © 2010 Check List and Authors Chec List Open Access | Freely available at www.checklist.org.br Journal of species lists and distribution pecies s of Helminth parasites of freshwater fishes, Nazas River ists L basin, northern Mexico 1* 1 2 Gerardo 1 Pérez-Ponce de León , Rogelio 3 Rosas-Valdez , 1 Rogelio Aguilar-Aguilar 1 , Berenit Mendoza- Garfias 1, Carlos Mendoza-Palmero 1, Luis García-Prieto , Aline Rojas-Sánchez 4 , Rosario Briosio- Aguilar , Rodolfo Pérez-Rodríguez and Omar Domínguez-Domínguez 1 Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Instituto de Biología, Laboratorio de Helmintología. Ap. Postal 70-153. C.P. 04510. México D.F., Mexico. 2 Universidad Autónoma “Benito Juárez” de Oaxaca, Escuela de Ciencias. Oaxaca, Mexico. 3 Institute of Parasitology, [email protected] Centre, Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic. Branišovská 31, 370 05 České Budějovice, Czech Republic 4 Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Facultad de Biología, Laboratorio de Biología Acuática. Morelia, Michoacán, Mexico. Abstract:* Corresponding author. E-mail: This paper represents the first study of the helminth parasites of freshwater fishes from the Nazas River basin in northern Mexico. Between July 2005 and December 2008, 906 individual fish were collected and examined for helminth parasites in 23 localities along the river basin. Twenty-three species of fish were examined as a part of this inventory work. In total, 41 helminth species were identified: 19 monogeneans, 10 digeneans, seven cestodes, one acanthocephalan, and four nematodes. The biogeographical implications of our findings are briefly discussed. Introduction et al. et al. del Mayran, in state of Coahuila (Castañeda-Gaytán Freshwater fish helminth parasites are undoubtedly 2005; Návar 2006). the most well-known group among vertebrate parasites Between July 2005 and December 2008, 906 individual in Mexico.et al.This group of parasites has been studied in fish belonging to 23 species were collected in 23 localities Mexico since the decade of the 1930´s (Pérez-Ponce along the Nazas River drainage, with sample sizes per de León 1996). Recently, Luque and Poulin (2007) species varying from 2 to 145 specimens (Figure 1; suggested that Mexico stands out as a hotspot of parasite Table 1). Fish were collected under the Cartilla Nacional diversity for freshwater fishes. Still,et al. the helminth fauna de Colector Científico de Flora y Fauna Silvestre (FAUT- of freshwateret al. fishes from northern river basins in Mexico 0057 issued to G.P.P.L.). Fish were collected with seine is poorly known (Garrido-Olvera 2006; Pérez-Ponce nets and electrofishing, and were kept alive and studied de León 2009). Recently, we started collecting for helminths no more that 4 hours after capture. All samples in that part of the country with the main objective internal organs were analyzed separately in Petri dishes of completing the inventory, mostlyet al. by considering with 0.65 % saline under the stereoscope. Gills from Nearctic freshwater fishes such as cyprinids, catostomids, each host were also obtained and placed in tap water ictalurids and centrarchids (Lee 1980), which to search for monogeneans. Monogeneans were fixed constituteet al. the most abundant and most species-rich host in glycerin ammonium-picrate (GAP) in order to study species in River basins in northern Mexicoet (Espinosa-al. their sclerotized structures. After the morphological Pérez 1993). The first results of that survey work evaluation, specimens fixed with GAP were remounted in were published by Pérez-Ponce de León (2009) Canada balsam following Ergens (1969); some specimens who described the endohelminth fauna of freshwater were fixed in hot formaline 4 %, stained with Gomori’s fishes from the upper Mezquital River basin. In this trichrome and mounted in Canada balsam to study their paper, we present the results of the survey work we internal organs. Endoparasites were removed to a Petri conducted in freshwater fishes of the Nazas River basin, dish with saline 0.65 %, prior to fixation. Digeneans and an interesting area from the biogeographical point of view cestodes were fixed with hot (steaming) 4 % formalin. that represents an interior (closed) basin that runs from Acanthocephalans were maintained at 4 °C for 12 hours in the Sierra Madre Occidental down to the lowlands of the distilled water, and then fixed in 70 % ethanol. Nematodes MaterialsMeseta del Norte. and Methods were fixed with hot (steaming) 4 % formalin or 70 % ethanol. All helminths were processed following standard procedures. Identification was made using specialized The Nazas River is an endorreic River basin located literature, and representative specimens of all helminth in the north of Mexico and it extends along the states of species were deposited at the Colección Nacional de Coahuila and Durango. It is only 560 Km in length, but Helmintos, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional irrigates an area of 71,906 km² in the middle of the deserts ResultsAutónoma and de MéxicoDiscussion (UNAM), Mexico City (CNHE). of Coahuila and Durango states (Figure 1). The Nazas is also nurtured by the San Juan, Ramos, Potreritos, del Oro, Nazas, Santiago, Tepehuanes and Peñón Blanco Rivers. The In total, 41 helminth species were found, representing River starts at the Mexican Sierra Madre Occidental and 26 genera and 17 families. Of the 41 species we record drainsCheck through List | Volume state 6 | Issue of 1Durango | 2010 into the now dry Laguna herein, 19 were monogeneas, 10 digeneans, seven026 Pérez-Ponce de León et al. | Helminth parasites of freshwater fishes, Nazas River basin, northern Mexico cestodes, one acanthocephalan, and four nematodes. The were collected for DNA work or scanning electron systematic position of each helminth species is presented microscopy are referred as “MW”. Some specimens were next, with information related with host (s), locality(s) and not collected and are referred as “NC”. Figure 1. Map of the Mexican Republic showing the localities where fish were sampled along the Nazas River basin in state of Durango. Table 1. LocalitySpecies of freshwater fishes analyzed in this survey, with host name and sampleHost size perspecies locality. Sample size Astyanax mexicanus Cyprinodon nazas 1 Balneario “la Concha”, Peñón Blanco De Filippi, 1853 6 Poeciliopsis gracilis Miller, 1976 32 Astyanax mexicanus Heckel, 1848 6 Campostoma ornatum 2 Camino a San Rafael Jicorica 3 Catostomus nebuliferus Girard, 1856 1 Cyprinella garmani Garman, 1881 3 Gila conspersa Jordan, 1885 4 Lepomis megalotis Garman, 1881 12 Notropis chihuahua (Rafinesque, 1820) 9 Notropis nazas Woolman, 1892 12 Pimephales promelas Meek, 1904 15 Rhinichtys cataractae Rafinesque, 1820 5 Ictalurus pricei Valenciennes, 1842 15 Lepomis macrochirus 3 Charco las pitahayas, poblado Las Higueras Rutter, 1896 4 Gila conspersa Rafinesque, 1819 7 Oreochromis nilotica 1 Pimephales promelas Linnaeus, 1758 1 Poeciliopsis gracilis 2 Carassius auratus 9 Notropis chihuahua 4 Canal de Riego, poblado Dolores Hidalgo Linnaeus, 1979 1 Poeciliopsis gracilis 2 Campostoma ornatum 4 5 El Palmito 4 Check List | Volume 6 | Issue 1 | 2010 027 Pérez-Ponce de León et al. | Helminth parasites of freshwater fishes, Nazas River basin, northern Mexico Locality Host species Sample size Codoma ornata Notropis nazas Girard 1856 1 Astyanax mexicanus 10 Codoma ornata 6 Poza en el Arroyo Torreones 10 Gila conspersa 15 Ictalurus pricei 30 Notropis chihuahua 1 Campostoma ornatum 5 Catostomus nebuliferus 7 Puente en carretera Peñón Blanco-Yerbaniz 37 Codoma ornata 11 Cyprinella garmani 23 Cyprinus carpio 3 Gila conspersa 1 Notropis nazas 50 Pimephales promelas 6 Astyanax mexicanus 2 Catostomus nebuliferus 8 Puente Lajas I, poblado de San Juan Francisco Lajas 3 Gila conspersa 1 Astyanax mexicanus 39 Astyanax mexicanus 9 Puente Lajas II, poblado de San Juan Francisco Lajas 12 Campostoma ornatum 10 Río Covadonga, poblado de Peñón Blanco 4 Catostomus nebuliferus 20 Codoma ornata 19 Etheostoma pottsi 22 Gila conspersa Girard, 1859 20 Notropis nazas 51 Ictalurus pricei 17 Gila conspersa 11 Río Nazas, poblado de San Rafael Jicorica cf. 3 Ictalurus pricei 12 Río Nazas, puente Nazas, Poblado de Nazas 2 Notropis nazas cf. 1 Pimephales promelas 26 Poeciliopsis gracilis 11 Oreochromis niloticus 2 Lepomis macrochirus 1 Notropis nazas 13 Río Nazas, puente en carretera Rodeo-Hidalgo de Parral, desviación a Abasolo 7 Pimephales promelas 3 Asyanax mexicanus 21 Campostoma ornatum 14 Río San Juan en “El Cuarto” 10 Catostomus nebuliferus 16 Codoma ornata 5 Cyprinodon nazas 40 Gila conspersa 1 Poeciliopsis gracilis 32 Lepomis macrochirus 1 Lepomis macrochirus 15 Canal de riego, Tlahualillo 1 2 Cyprinus carpio 16 Canal de riego, Tlahualillo 2 4 Ictalurus pricei 17 Presa Francisco Zarco Linnaeus,1758 5 Ictalurus punctatus cf. 5 Campostoma ornatum Rafinesque,1818 5 Catostomus nebuliferus 18 Puente Carretera Paso Nacional 2 Ictalurus pricei 1 Lepomis macrochirus 2 Notropis nazas 4 Pimephales promelas 2 Pomoxis annularis 11 Astyanax mexicanus Rafinesque, 1918 4 19 Río Nazas, poblado de Santa Rita 22 Check List | Volume 6 | Issue 1 | 2010 028 Pérez-Ponce de León et al. | Helminth parasites of freshwater fishes, Nazas River basin, northern Mexico Locality Host species Sample size Carassius auratus Micropterus salmoides 1 Pimephales promelas Lacepède, 1802 2 Poeciliopsis gracilis 3 Pomoxis annularis 1 Oreochromis nilotica 1 Pomoxis annularis 1 Astyanax mexicanus 20 Río Nazas, salida de Presa Francisco