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A new and unexpected host for the sharksucker (Echeneis naucrates) with a brief review of the echeneid–host interactions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 February 2009

Juerg M. Brunnschweiler*
Affiliation:
Institute of Zoology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH–8057 Zurich, Switzerland
Ivan Sazima
Affiliation:
Departamento de Zoologia e Museu de História Natural, Caixa Postal 6109, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, 13083-970 Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: Juerg M. Brunnschweiler, Institute of Zoology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland email: juerg.brunnschweiler@zool.uzh.ch
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Abstract

The sharksucker, Echeneis naucrates, attaches to a variety of hosts including teleost fish, elasmobranchs, marine turtles, and mammals. We list 18 additional hosts not previously recorded for this species, including the first report of its attachment to a conspecific and review the possible role of the relationship between echeneid fish and their hosts. The attachment of E. naucrates to a conspecific represents an addition to known hosts for this species, but it remains unclear if remoras are a habitual host for conspecifics.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2006

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References

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