Patterns of multiparasitism and consequences of co-infection in fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas)

Individual hosts are often infected with multiple parasite species or strains simultaneously. Co-occurring parasites can profoundly impact each other and their hosts via interspecific interactions. To further our understanding of co-infection in wildlife, I censused the parasite communities of fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) from southern Alberta over three years. Nearly all minnows were co-infected, and the larval trematodes Ornithodiplostomum ptychocheilus and Ornithodiplostomum sp. co-occurred more frequently than expected by chance. I exposed minnows to cercariae of these species to evaluate the effects of intensity dependence and co-infection on parasite development. While negative intensity-dependent growth occurred only for O. ptychocheilus, both species were significantly smaller post-encystment in co-infections than in mono-infections. Thus, Ornithodiplostomum spp. development is influenced by conspecifics and heterospecifics. Taken together, my results suggest that naturally co-occurring parasites in spatially segregated infection sites can influence one another’s growth within their shared intermediate host, with possible ecological and evolutionary consequences.

Authors

• Hirtle, Sarah Valerie
• University of Lethbridge. Faculty of Arts and Science

• ecology
• parasitology
• co-infection
• parasitism
• host-parasite interactions
• trematoda
• biodiversity
• multiparasitism
• multi-species infection
• fish parasites
• Fathead minnow--Parasites--Research
• Fishes--Parasites
• Parasites--Behavior--Research
• Parasites--Ecology--Research
• Host-parasite relationships
• Trematoda--Research
• Dissertations, Academic

Identifier

hdl:10133/6155

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:opus.uleth.ca:10133/6155