NEMATODA DIVERSITY IN Colomesus psittacus (OSTEICHTHYES: TETRAODONTIFORMES) IN MARAJÓ BAY – PARÁ
Nematoda, Taxonomy, Pufferfish, Marajó
Tropical aquatic ecosystems are among the most vulnerable environments on the planet and have been suffering increasing human pressures, generating considerable loss of biodiversity. Especially when discussing the ichthyofauna, there is a loss of biomass consumed by the population, as well as a parasitic fauna that is still poorly studied, especially in taxonomic aspects, in the biology of the parasite and in the parasite/host relationship. This study aims to inventory the diversity of parasitic nematodes of Colomesus psittacus in the municipality of Soure on the shores of the Marajó Bay - Pará. The specimens are being acquired, already slaughtered, from fishermen who work in subsistence fishing. Each group of fish, which will make up the monthly sampling effort, will be transported individually in plastic bags cooled inside a box of expanded polymers, to the Laboratory of Animal Histology and Embryology – LHEA/UFRA. From the necropsied fish, with the aid of a stereoscopic microscope, nematodes will be obtained, which must be cleaned, counted to determine the ecological indices of parasitism, and later fixed and stored in 10% formalin and A.F.A., submitted to light microscopy and scanning electron microscope. For the taxonomic identification of the nematodes found, the reference identification keys for the Phylum Nematoda associated with the description and redescription articles of the species present in the literature will be used.