A new species of Alella (Copepoda, Lernaeopodidae) parasitic in the tarakihi, Cheilodactylus macropterus, in New Zealand

Abstract

A new lemaeopodid copepod gill parasite of the tarakihi Cheilodactylus macropterus is described from two locations around New Zealand. It is distinguished from the other species of Alella on the basis of the armament of the first maxilla and the second antenna. Of 300 tarakihi collected from the Canterbury Bight, New Zealand, 21 fish, all less than 27 cm fork length and less than five years of age, carried Alella tarakihi n. sp. and a further three copepod specimens were obtained from 427 host fish from Tasman Bay.

Keywords:

• copepod
• parasite
• Alella tarakihi
• taxonomy
• new species
• gills
• fish
• Cheilodactylus macropterus
• tarakihi

Notes

Present address: Department of Statistics, Private Bag, Wellington, New Zealand