Digenea parasites of jellyfish and ctenophores of the southern Atlantic

Parasites of planktonic cnidarians and ctenophores in the southern Atlantic Ocean are little known. The aim of this study was to describe three new metacercariae from jellyfish and ctenophores, and assess the importance of the gelatinous zooplankton as intermediate hosts in the life history of digeneans. During examination of zooplankton in Argentine Sea for digeneans that mature in fishes, two species of jellyfish (Phialidium sp. and Liriope tetraphylla Chamiso & Eysenhardt, 1821), and one ctenophore (Mnemiopsis mccradyi Mayer, 1900) were analyzed for parasites. The samples were obtained in Mar del Plata. Three metacercariae belonging to Faustulidae, Lepocreadiidae and Hemiuridae are described. The prevalence (percent of hosts infected) varied from 1.4–30% and the range of intensity (number of individuals of a parasite species in a single infected host) was from 1 to 30 for the different metacercariae. Given the important position of free-swimming cnidarians and ctenophores in the marine food web, and the great number of fishes that have been found with these organisms in their digestive tracts, their importance in the life histories of digeneans should not be underrated.