Abstract / Introduction / Summary:
Infections of aegathoid stage of cymothoid isopod genus Anilocra (Crustacea) attaching on the heads of following three species of apogonid fishes (Perci- formes): Ring-tail Cardinalfish Ostorhinchus aureus (Lacepède, 1802), Flower Cardinalfish O. fleurieu Lacepède, 1802, and Ear-spot Cardinalfish O. notatus (Houttuyn, 1782) and Golden Sweeper Parapriacan- thus ransonneti Steindachner, 1870 (Perciformes: Pempheridae), were observed from shallow waters of Isso, north coast of Yaku-shima Island, Osumi Islands, southwestern Japan during every January to July for 2004. Underwater surveys at a depth of 20 m by a scu- ba diver revealed that this parasitic isopod infesting mainly the Ear-spot Cardinalfish and prevalence is ap- proximately 5–20%. Although this isopod could be identified only the generic level by the observations, the findings represent the first records of infections of Anilocra for these fishes.
