The Paraná River is formed by junction of the Grande and Paranaíba Rivers and is the principal river of the La Plata basin. From source to mouth in the La Plata River estuary, the Paraná River flows for approximately 4,695 km (Petri & Fúlfaro, 1985) and drains most of South-Central South America. There are several dams in the main channel and tributaries of the Paraná River, but a floodplain still remains with a complex of tributaries, side channels, lakes, and marginal dikes (Stevaux, 1994; Souza Filho, 2009). This floodplain extends to the States of Paraná and Mato Grosso do Sul, encompassing areas of the Ilha Grande National Park, the Ivinheima State Park and the Environmental Protection Area (APA) of the islands and floodplain of the Paraná River

We analyzed 54 specimens of Hoplias aff. malabaricus (Bloch, 1794) collected between March 2010 and March 2011 from the upper Paraná river Neotropical floodplain, Brazil. All hosts were parasitized by at least one species of Monogenea. The parasites species with higher prevalence were Urocleidoides cuiabai Rosim, Mendoza-Franco & Luque, 2011 (96.29 %) and U. malabaricusi Rosim, Mendoza-Franco & Luque, 2011 (92.59%). The community of gill ectoparasites examined showed an aggregated pattern. Urocleidoides cuiabai was the dominant species in the sample (C > 0.25). The parasitic abundance showed significant positive correlation with the standard length of the host for U. malabaricusi and U. eremitus Kritsky, Thatcher & Boeger, 1986. There were significant differences in the abundance values between male and female fish to the species of parasites Urocleidoides brasiliensis Ro...

This study presents the current state of research of freshwater fishes' parasites in Brazil, exploring the watersheds requiring further studies. The articles used were obtained through searching the databases ISI and SciELO, as well as direct search in the Curricula Vitae of researchers in this area. The survey was conducted during the month of March 2012 and 685 articles were obtained. The most studied group was Monogenea. Taxonomy was the most common studied subject. The most reported river basin is the Amazon region and the region of Parana. The largest concentration of periodic articles was Memorias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz. Most articles were published in journals with Qualis B1 and B2 and without impact factor. More than half of the articles were found in the Curriculum of researchers. It is believed that this information will contribute to the knowledge of the available literatur...

An ichthyoparasitological study on 166 fishes, belonging to Poecilia reticulata Peters, 1859 (Poeciliidae), Rhamdia quelen (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) (Pimelodidae) and Hypostomus ancistroides (Ihering, 1911) (Loricariidae) in tributary streams of the Pirapó River, located in and around urban city of Maringá, Paraná State, Brazil. The research aimed to recognize the endoparasite community of fishes analyzed, as well as to improve the knowledge about host/parasite relationships. We analyzed the correlation between the total length of the fish with levels of parasitism (prevalence, abundance). Due to the existence of sexual dimorphism in the species P. reticulata, we investigated the possible influence of sex of this fish on parasitism. In addition, we also analyzed the body surface and nostril for ectoparasites studies. There were no metazoan parasites on the body surface and nostril of...

The present study was designed to characterize the community structure of parasites of Salminus brasiliensis in the upper Paraná River during different seasons, and to examine the levels of parasitism of this hosts. The community of parasites of S. brasiliensis did not have a dominant species. Four of the five most prevalent parasite species showed aggregate distribution. In relation to other aspects of the community, each group encompassed their particular parasite, which highlights the differences inherent in the biology and life cycle of each species.

Most parasites represent a serious socioeconomic problem, because they affect pets, commercially raised, wild, and zoonotic animals. Weight loss, growth retardation, predisposition to other diseases and death are symptoms presented by the parasitized animals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the helminth fauna in bull-frog Lithobates catesbeianus raised for sale. We worked with five frog farms in the Vale do Paraíba, São Paulo, Brazil, and examined a total of 185 animals. The autopsies were performed, and all bodies that may have parasites were examined. Diagnostic parasitology tests were also performed. We found one species of nematode, Longibucca catesbeianae, with a prevalence of 1.7%, mean abundance of 14.16 and an average intensity of 850 (with a range of 729 to 1014). Given that most studies of parasitology in amphibians is conducted in free-living animals, more research on ...

Parasitism was observed in 72.7% of 44 specimens of Metynnis lippincottianus (Cope, 1870) (Characidae) caught in the Upper Paraná River floodplain, Brazil. One species of digenean, Dadayus pacupeva Lacerda, Takemoto & Pavanelli, 2003, and four species of nematodes, Spinoxyuris oxydoras Peter, 1994, Contracaecum sp. Railliet & Henry, 1912 (larval stage), Procamallanus (Spirocamallanus) inopinatus Travassos, Artigas & Pereira, 1928 and Raphidascaris (Sprentascaris) mahnerti Petter & Cassone, 1984 were identified. The prevalence of D. pacupeva was correlated with the host's standard length. Correlations between the host's standard length and the abundance of S. oxydoras, P. (S.) inopinatus and D. pacupeva were observed. In addition, fish length was correlated with the diversity of parasites. D. pacupeva and S. oxydoras had their abundances influenced by the host's gonadal m...