Non-indigenous species may have negative impacts on the native fauna in their competition for food and habitat, but they can also introduce non-indigenous parasite species, with sometimes devastating consequences. Cointroduction of parasites should therefore be carefully monitored, but this aspect is mostly overlooked. The round goby Neogobius melanostomus (Pallas, 1814) and the tubenose goby Proterorhinus semilunaris (Heckel, 1937), both known for their invasiveness, have recently been discovered in Belgium. Here, we morphologically and genetically document the cointroduction of the Ponto-Caspian Gyrodactylus proterorhini Ergens, 1967, originally described on tubenose goby in southern Slovakia. Because of their direct life cycle and extraordinary reproductive capacities, gyrodactylid monogenean parasites can readily invade new areas together with the host. Moreover, G. proterorhini has a wide host range and might therefore represent a threat to other gobiid fishes. The Gyrodactylus parasite found on the Belgian round goby population is probably acquired through secondary infection from local fish, as suggested by molecular phylogenetic analysis.
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A BioBlitz is a rapid and intensive survey of a specific geographic area that brings together experts and often lay participants to assess biodiversity, typically of macrobiota that are easily observed and identifiable on-site. This concept has become popular across taxonomic fields, attracting interest globally to increase knowledge of local biodiversity. Inspired by the success of the approach, we undertook a ‘ParasiteBlitz’ at an unexplored locality (Stono Preserve, Charleston, South Carolina, USA) to determine its feasibility for parasites, whose assessment of diversity is largely neglected worldwide. We assembled a team of parasitologists with complementary expertise. Over 12 days in April 2023, we intensively screened fishes and aquatic invertebrates for parasites, and sampled sediment and water for environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding from four aquatic habitats: wetland, freshwater pond, brackish impoundment, and tidal creek. We incorporated assistance from non-parasitologists and students. Details on methodologies and results are provided in individual papers in this Special IssueCollection. Traditional methods revealed the presence of ca. 100 species of seven major metazoan parasite taxa and the eDNA survey yielded over 1,100 amplicon sequence variants identified as parasites, most with sequences unmatched in GenBank, and resulting in only a few species identified as named species in the one-year post-Blitz timeframe we imposed upon ourselves for identification. Limitations and challenges of the ParasiteBlitz are discussed, and our results support that this approach can be effective for rapid discovery of the dimensions of parasite assemblages in an understudied environment and contribute to parasitology knowledge.
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RBINS Staff Publications 2025
