Occurrence of Tetracampos sp. (Cestoda) and Paracamallanus sp. and Rhabdochona sp. (Nematoda) in the catfish Clarias gariepinus in Ouémé River in Benin (West Africa)

Abstract

The sharptooth fish Clarias gariepinus is widespread throughout tropical swamps, lakes, and rivers in Africa. Among the parasites related to this fish, there is a large number of helminths. This study investigated the most abundant helminths from C. gariepinus comprising two Nematoda and one Cestoda species, and aimed to provide prevalence, seasonal fluctuation, and analytic-specific description of these parasites. Fish were collected from Agonlin-Lowé and investigated for parasites over 12 months. Of the 339 specimens of C. gariepinus examined, 1,207 individuals of the nematodes Paracamallanus sp. (Paracamallanidae) and Rhabdochona sp. (Rhabdochonidae) were collected. For the cestode Tetracampos sp. (Bothriocephalidae), 294 individuals were identified. A short description was performed for each parasite species based on micrographs provided by photomicroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. The total prevalence was found to be 80.53% comprising 72.56% of C. gariepinus infected by at least two parasites among the three investigated. No significant difference was revealed in seasonal parasite occurrence either in males ( 2 = 2.241; df = 3; p = 0.524) or in females ( 2 = 0.287; df = 3; p = 0.962). Climatic season change did not influence host infection neither in sexes nor in body weight. Water physicochemical quality is not correlated with infection prevalence. Helminthes infecting C. gariepinus are mostly represented by these three species. Their prevalence was not influenced by environmental or fish morphometric parameters. The specific identification should be improved with genetics.