Occurrence of piscine parasitic copepods (Crustacea) on sharks taken mainly off Cape Recife, South Africa

Abstract

A total of 10 species of parasitic Copepoda, Alebion carchariae, Perissopus oblongatus, Dinemoura latifolia, Echthrogaleus denticulatus, Echthrogaleus coleoptratus, Pandarus bicolor, Pandarus smithi, Pandarus floridanus, Anthosoma crassum and Nemesis lamna, is recorded together with preferred sites of attachment to the host, from eight shark species, Carcharias taurus, Carcharodon carcharias, Mustelus musteius, Squalus megalops, hunts oxyrinchus, Hexanchus griseus, Galeorhinus galeus and Pliotrema warreni from off the South-Eastern Cape, South Africa. All of the occurrences reported here are new distribution records and in most cases represent new host records for coastal fish of the African continent.