Ecology and biodiversity of metazoan parasites of Pimelodus maculatus (Lacépède, 1803) and Hoplias malabaricus (Bloch, 1794) of Jacaré-Pepira river, hydrographic basin of Tietê-Jacaré, SP, Brazil

Abstract

Ecological interactions are one of the pillars of biodiversity and parasitism is one of the most successful forms of life, given the frequency with which they have evolved and also the number of parasites that exist today, so in recent years, studies on aquatic host parasites have received increased attention due to their commercialization capacity and their ability to be used as a highly sensitive bioindicator of environmental contamination and changes in biodiversity. The Jacaré-Pepira is a sixth-order river with a total length of 2,612 km², which has large flooded areas in its floodplain, being popularly known as "Pantaninho Paulista" and is part of the Tiete-Jacaré basin. There are species such as yellow-mandi (Pimelodus maculatus) and traíra (Hoplias malabaricus) that have an excellent potential of commercialization and are very widespread species in all the watersheds of South America. There are few studies on the structure and composition of the ichthyofauna of the Jacaré-Pepira river, much less on the parasitic fauna associated with the fish species, so the main objective of the study will be to evaluate the structure and composition of the parasitic fauna of the species through ecological and biodiversity studies, both for a better knowledge of the hosts and of the local, thus contributing to the increase of the inventory of global biodiversity. (AU)