Ecology Summary - Dinurus tornatus

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Ecology of Dinurus tornatus

Main Ref.	Williams, E.H. Jr. and L. Bunkley-Williams, 1996
Remarks	The superinfections we found in the Caribbean have not been recorded elsewhere. Possibly, infections are more severe and damaging to dolphin in the Caribbean than in the Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic coasts of North and South America. A very heavy infection of 250 flukes was reported in a dolphin from India. Associations: found 5 to 2805 worms in 13 dolphin from off La Parguera. Hundreds of other parasites occurred with this parasite, but none showed any correlation with the numbers of this worm. Host Specificity: a characteristic parasite of dolphin and probably pompano dolphin. It appears to prefer dolphins to scombrids by having higher numbers and occurring in greater frequency. Some records from scombrids may represent false hosts from dolphin prey and/or misidentifications of D. euthynniYamaguti or D. scombri. New host: Bar Jack. Damage to Host: Superinfections of this worm must damage and limit the growth of this commercially and recreationally valuable fish. Encysted metacercariae cause "black-spot disease" in herrings from Argentina (Ref. 359).

Main Ref.

Williams, E.H. Jr. and L. Bunkley-Williams, 1996

Remarks

The superinfections we found in the Caribbean have not been recorded elsewhere. Possibly, infections are more severe and damaging to dolphin in the Caribbean than in the Gulf of Mexico or Atlantic coasts of North and South America. A very heavy infection of 250 flukes was reported in a dolphin from India. Associations: found 5 to 2805 worms in 13 dolphin from off La Parguera. Hundreds of other parasites occurred with this parasite, but none showed any correlation with the numbers of this worm. Host Specificity: a characteristic parasite of dolphin and probably pompano dolphin. It appears to prefer dolphins to scombrids by having higher numbers and occurring in greater frequency. Some records from scombrids may represent false hosts from dolphin prey and/or misidentifications of D. euthynniYamaguti or D. scombri. New host: Bar Jack. Damage to Host: Superinfections of this worm must damage and limit the growth of this commercially and recreationally valuable fish. Encysted metacercariae cause "black-spot disease" in herrings from Argentina (Ref. 359).

Aquatic zones / Water bodies

	Marine - Neritic	Marine - Oceanic	Brackishwater	Freshwater
Marine zones / Brackish and freshwater bodies	supra-littoral zone littoral zone sublittoral zone	epipelagic mesopelagic epipelagic abyssopelagic hadopelagic	estuaries/lagoons/brackish seas mangroves marshes/swamps	rivers/streams lakes/ponds caves exclusively in caves

Highighted items on the list are where Dinurus tornatus may be found.

Habitat

Substrate	Pelagic;
Substrate Ref.
Special habitats	Other habitats: other invertebrates (dolphin; Bar jack.);
Special habitats Ref.

Associations

Ref.	Williams, E.H. Jr. and L. Bunkley-Williams, 1996
Associations	parasitism;
Associated with
Association remarks
Parasitism	(Stomach (Ref. 359).) inside host

feeding

Feeding type
Feeding type Ref.
Feeding habit
Feeding habit Ref.

Trophic Level(s)

Estimation method	original sample		unfished population		Remark
Estimation method	Troph	s.e.	Troph	s.e.	Remark
From diet composition
From individual food items
Ref.

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