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Global diversity of fishlice (Crustacea: Branchiura: Argulidae) in freshwater

  • Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment
  • Published:
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Abstract

The Branchiura of freshwater habitats, consisting of the valid genera Argulus, Chonopeltis, Dipteropeltis, and Dolops, presently contains 113 valid species and 12 undescribed species. The entire group is composed of ectoparasitic species that usually live on fishes. The highest diversity of genera and species occurs in the Afrotropical and Neotropical regions. The diversity of the freshwater species surpasses that of species in marine and brackish waters, but this could be due to inadequate study of the fauna of the latter habitats. One species, Argulus japonicus, has been introduced from east/southeast Asia to all other continents, except Antarctica. Studies of higher level relationships place the Branchiura with either Pentastomida or Ostracoda. Hypotheses about phylogenetic relationships of either the genera or species in this group have not been proposed.

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Acknowledgments

The author expresses much appreciation to the organizers of the meeting on Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment held in Mechelen, Belgium for their careful planning, logistical support, and financial assistance, resulting in an immensely productive and enjoyable session, and for all their efforts to assemble this volume. The author also thanks Geoff Boxshall and an anonymous reviewer for their comments on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Aquatic Biodiversity Research Institute, 11205 Schroeder Road, Saint Marys, OH, 45885, USA

    William J. Poly

  2. Department of Ichthyology, California Academy of Sciences, Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA, 94118, USA

    William J. Poly

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  1. William J. Poly
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Correspondence to William J. Poly.

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Guest editors: E. V. Balian, C. Lévêque, H. Segers & K. Martens

Freshwater Animal Diversity Assessment

The present paper was intended as a very brief overview of the known diversity of the Branchiura in freshwaters only, and regrettably is deficient in mention of much information and many relevant citations pertaining to the group.

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Poly, W.J. Global diversity of fishlice (Crustacea: Branchiura: Argulidae) in freshwater. Hydrobiologia 595, 209–212 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-007-9015-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-007-9015-3

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