Occurrence of parasitic copepods in Carangid fishes from Parangipettai, Southeast coast of India.

In the present study, 68 fishes were infested out of 544 specimens examined from six different species of Carangid fishes which were collected from Parangipettai coastal waters. Eight species of parasitic copepods were found on gill filaments, body surface and nasal capsule regions. The maximum prevalence was recorded in Carangoides malabaricus (22.5 %) and minimum was noticed in (2.4 %) Selaroides leptolepis. The intensity of infection ranged from 1 to 1.2. Thus, considerable variation in the respiratory area was observed owing to the attachment of parasites in the infected fishes. Caligus sp. and C. epidemicus parasites were attached to body surface and only one Sphyriid sp. parasites were found in nasal capsule region. It is very difficult to estimate the actual harm to fish caused by the presence of parasites; if this is uneasy in cultured fish, it is almost impossible in feral fish populations. It should also be emphasized that the presence of a parasite does not necessarily imply manifestation of a disease. In aquaculture, some parasites are able to reproduce rapidly and heavily infect a large proportion of fish which may lead to diseases with significant economic consequences.