Sea lice (Copepoda: Caligidae) parasitic on fishes reported from the Neotropical region

Abstract

The Caligidae, also known as sea lice, is a family of parasitic copepods of fish that consists of 31 genera and more than 450 species, some of which have been deleterious to cultured fish. The goal of this paper was to structure a list of sea lice species known from the Neotropical region based on information from published records. A total of 115 sea lice species found on 217 fish species were listed, including 58 species of Caligus and 22 of Lepeophtheirus. It seems that the inventory of this group of parasites is far from complete. Considering the promotion of finfish sea-cage aquaculture throughout the coastal areas of Latin America, a better understanding of the sea lice biodiversity will support systematic work on parasitic copepods in the Neotropics and will provide fundamental information that could impact fish disease control and prevention strategies.

Keywords:

• parasite biodiversity
• parasitic crustaceans
• Latin America
• marine and brackish water fish

Introduction

Parasitic copepods are some of the most frequently encountered taxa parasitizing marine fish.[1] Of the 30 families of copepods that parasitize marine fish, members of Caligidae Burmeister, 1835 (Copepoda: Siphonostomatoida) are the most common.[1] The Caligidae includes 31 genera and 487 species mainly distributed in the genera Caligus Müller, 1785 (250) and Lepeophtheirus von Nordmann, 1832 (121); the other genera are Abasia Wilson, 1908 (6), Alanlewisia Boxshall, 2008 (1), Alebion Krøyer, 1863 (8), Anchicaligus Stebbing, 1900 (1), Anuretes Heller, 1865 (20), Arrama Dojiri & Cressey, 1991 (2), Avitocaligus Boxshall & Justine, 2005 (2), Belizia Cressey, 1990 (1), Caligodes Heller, 1865 (4), Caritus Cressey, 1967 (2), Dartevellia Brian, 1939 (1), Echetus Krøyer, 1863 (1), Euryphorus Milne Edwards, 1840 (3), Gloiopotes Steenstrup & Lütken, 1861 (5), Hermilius Heller, 1865 (8), Kabataella Prabha & Pillai, 1983 (1), Mappates Rangnekar, 1958 (2), Markevichus Özdikmen, 2008 (1), Metacaligus (Thomsen, 1949) (5), Paralebion Wilson, 1911 (4), Parapetalus Steenstrup & Lütken, 1861 (8), Parechetus Pillai, 1962 (1), Pseudanuretes Yamaguti, 1936 (9), Pseudechetus Prabha & Pillai, 1979 (1), Pupulina Van Beneden, 1892 (5), Sciaenophilus Van Beneden, 1852 (3), Sinocaligus Shen, 1957 (4), Synestius Steenstrup & Lütken, 1861 (1), and Tuxophorus Wilson, 1908 (6).[2]

Members of the Caligidae are commonly known as ‘sea lice’. Apparently, these parasites are not deleterious for wild fish; however, some species have caused serious problems to fish cultured in marine or brackish water. Lepeophtheirus salmonis Krøyer, 1837 and Caligus rogercresseyi Boxshall & Bravo, 2000 have largely affected the salmonid farming industry in the northern and southern hemispheres, respectively.[3] Caligus epidemicus Hewitt, 1971 is a pathogenic parasite in finfish aquaculture in the Indo-West region.[4] Caligus chiastos Lin & Ho, 2003 has caused health problems in the southern Bluefin tuna farming in Australia.[5] Thus, an appropriate knowledge about the biodiversity as well as the biology and ecology of this group of parasites may be suitable in Latin American regions where marine finfish aquaculture is gaining popularity.

In Neotropical marine fishes, copepods represent the second largest parasitic group.[6] However, the description of sea lice biodiversity has been given at slow pace, with isolate records of known species or descriptions of new species. In some cases, it may be difficult to access to scattered, past literature. Therefore, in the present work we provide a list of sea lice species that parasitize fish from the Neotropical region (Caribbean, Central and South America) as reference point for further studies into taxonomy, ecology, and other aspects of this interesting group of parasites.

Material and methods

The list of species herein presented is updated until March 2015, and contains records found in previous literature which was gathered by browsing in Zoological Record, Google Scholar and Scopus using search terms ‘Caligidae’, ‘caligid’, ‘Caligus’, ‘Lepeophtheirus’, ‘sea lice’, ‘parasitic copepod’, ‘parasitic crustacean’, combined with the name of a particular geographical region (e.g. ‘Neotropics’, ‘Brazil’, ‘Colombia’, ‘Ecuador’, ‘Eastern Pacific’), including the Spanish translation of these terms. Records in Ho & Lin’s book were also checked.[7] Genera and species are ordered alphabetically following the classification and systematics of Walter & Boxshall.[2] For each sea lice species, the name, authority, fish host species, locality and references are presented. Fish names follow FishBase.[8]

Results

In the present work, 115 species (including 19 unidentified species) of sea lice (Appendix 1) found on 217 fish species are listed. Of these, 58 are known species of Caligus and 22 of Lepeophtheirus. The remaining species are distributed in nine genera (Alebion, Anuretes, Caligodes, Euryphorus, Gloiopotes, Lepeophtheirus, Metacaligus, Parapetalus and Tuxophorus). The sea lice species with the widest host range were Caligus mutabilis Wilson, 1905, C. productus Dana, 1852, and C. rufimaculatus Wilson, 1905 from 32, 26 and 20 fish host species, respectively. The last species in addition to Caligus evelynae Suárez-Morales, Camisotti & Martín, 2012, C. tetrodontis Barnard, 1948, C. undulatus Shen & Li, 1959, and Lepeophtheirus alvaroi Suárez-Morales & Gasca, 2012 have been also found freely swimming.

The sea lice species with the widest geographical distribution were C. productus recorded from Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Gulf of Mexico, Mexican Pacific, Panama and Venezuela; Caligus bonito Wilson, 1905 from Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Gulf of Mexico, Mexican Pacific, Panama, Peru and Venezuela; and Caligus coryphaenae Streenstrup & Lütken, 1861 from Brazil, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Panama, Peru and Venezuela.

The fish host species harbouring more sea lice species were Lutjanus argentiventris (8), Caranx caballus (7), and Scomberomorus sp. (7). Mexico, Brazil, and Chile were the countries with the major number of records of sea lice species (48, 36, and 23 species, respectively).

Discussion

According to the list provided in this paper, Caligus is currently the dominant caligid genus found in Neotropical marine and brackish water fishes. It is in agreement with the fact that species of Caligus are mostly found on warm water fishes in contrast with Lepeophtheirus diversity which tends to be low in tropical areas.[7,9] As far as we know, specific evolutionary or ecological mechanisms underlying this dominance of Caligus are not well understood. Morphologically, species of both genera are similar, the main distinguishing feature is the pair of lunules (sucker-like supplementary attachment organs on the frontal plates) present in Caligus and absent in Lepeophtheirus.[10,11] However, lunules are also present in other genera of the Caligidae. There is some evidence pointing out that species of Caligus are more active swimmers and transfer more frequently between hosts than species of Lepeophtheirus (see discussion in [12]). Such swimming ability would enable diversification in species of Caligus driven by dispersal and host-switching. According to Hoberg and Brooks [13], in Earth’s history, the major radiations in host-parasite assemblages have been preceded by ecological disruption, ecological breakdown and host-switching.

Even though sea lice are generally host specific, there are some species able to parasitize various hosts.[10] In the Neotropics, C. mutabilis appears to have the widest host range, including Atlantic and Pacific hosts. This species was originally described by Wilson in 1905,[14] and then redescribed by Cressey and Cressey [15]. It seems that C. mutabilis has intraspecific variation at least in the shape of the genital complex [14] and the length of the setae on the exopod of leg four,[15] but this issue has not been clearly addressed. In a recent phylogenetic analysis of sea lice species based on mtDNA sequences,[16] the group formed by C. mutabilis isolates showed a relatively high intraspecific genetic divergence. Therefore, it is necessary to perform a study to determine the extent of morphological and genetic variation within this species.

The present report includes sea lice species that have been found free-swimming. The occurrence of adults and juvenile stages of caligiform copepods in plankton samples has not been rare. There are species (e.g. C. undulatus) with a wide geographical distribution and that have yet to be reported from a fish host.[17]

The large geographical range reached by some sea lice species (i.e. C. productus, C. bonito, and C. coryphaenae) in the Neotropics is comprehensible considering that some of their fish hosts (e.g. Coryphaena hippurus, Katsuwonus pelamis, Mugil cephalus, Thunnus albacares and Thunnus obesus) are distributed in tropical and subtropical seas throughout the world.

The present work, to some extent, provides evidence of the limited knowledge on the sea lice biodiversity in several Latin American countries. The number of species could be significantly higher than reported herein. For instance, a recent survey performed in one single locality of Ecuador uncovered 22 species of Caligus and 5 of Lepeophtheirus, most of which were new records to this country.[18] This situation is not only true for parasitic copepods. According to Luque and Poulin [6], our knowledge of the parasite biodiversity of Latin American fishes is in its infancy, the distribution of the study effort has been quite heterogeneous and the majority of known fish species have not been examined for parasites. The threat of sea lice for farmed fish should not be minimized. In terms of aquaculture and fish health, the appropriate knowledge of the parasite fauna could be useful to improve diagnosis, control and management of parasitic diseases, as well as more detailed research in the future.

Associate Editor: Juan Manuel Guayasamin.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Appendix 1.

List of sea lice (Copepoda: Caligidae) species parasitic on fishes reported from the Neotropical region

Table

Sea lice	Host	Locality	Reference
Alebion carchariae Krøyer, 1863	Unspecified	Gulf of Mexico	[19]
		São Paulo, Brazil	[20]
Alebion gracilis Wilson, 1905	Carcharhinus albimarginatus; C. obscurus	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Alebion lobatus Cressey, 1970	Carcharhinus plumbeus	Gulf of Mexico	[19]
Alebion pacificus Cressey, 1972	Carcharhinus falciformis; C. galapagensis; C. leucas	Baja California, Mexico	[19,21]
Anuretes heckelii (Krøyer, 1963)	Chaetodipterus faber	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
		Veracruz, Mexico	[21]
Caligodes laciniatus (Krøyer, 1863)	Ablennes hians; Tylosurus acus acus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Ablennes hians; Sphyraena argentea; Tylosurus acus acus; T. crocodilus crocodilus	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Caligus aesopus Wilson, 1921	Seriola lalandi; S. peruana	Chile	[22]
	Caranx caballus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
	Calamus brachysomus; Seriola rivoliana	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus asperimanus Pearse, 1951	Calamus brachysomus; Haemulon steindachneri; Lutjanus argentiventris; L. guttatus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus atromaculatus Wilson, 1913	Anisotremus virginicus; Haemulon plumierii; H. sciurus	Belize	[23]
Caligus balistae Steenstrup & Lütken, 1861	Aluterus scriptus; Archosargus rhomboidalis; Balistes capriscus; B. vetula; Canthidermis maculata; C. sufflamen; Coryphaena hippurus; Stephanolepis hispidus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus bennetti Causey, 1953	Lobotes surinamensis	Venezuela	[24]
	Kyphosus sectatrix; Paralabrax maculatofasciatus	Mexican Atlantic and Pacific	[21]
Caligus biaculeatus Brian, 1914	Haemulon sciurus	Belize	[23]
Caligus bonito Wilson, 1905	Lutjanus griseus	Isla de Margarita, Venezuela	[25]
	Lutjanus griseus; Mugil cephalus; Oligoplites saurus; Pomatomus saltatrix; Scomberomorus cavalla;	Gulf of Mexico	[7]
	Cratinus agassizii; Euthynnus lineatus; Katsuwonus pelamis; Lutjanus novemfasciatus; Lutjanus sp.; Sarda chiliensis	Mexican Pacific	[7,21]
	Cratinus agassizii; Euthynnus lineatus; Sarda orientalis	Galapagos, Ecuador	[7]
	Sarda chiliensis; Trachurus murphyi	Peru	[7]
	Sarda sarda	Western Atlantic (from Woods to Brazil)	[7]
	Euthynnus alletteratus; Katsuwonus pelamis; Mugil cephalus; M. curema; M. liza; Oligoplites palometa	Brazil	[7,20]
	Euthynnus lineatus; Sarda orientalis;	Panama	[7]
	Sarda chiliensis; Trachurus murphyi	Chile	[22]
Caligus callaoensis Duran, 1980	Cynoscion xanthulus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
Caligus chamelensis Morales-Serna, Pinacho-Pinacho, Gómez & Pérez-Ponce de León, 2014	Kyphosus elegans	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
Caligus cheilodactyli Krøyer, 1863	Cheilodactylus variegatus; Cheilodactylus sp.; Chromis crusma; Eleginops maclovinus; Odontesthes regia; Prolatilus jugularis; Sebastes oculatus	Chile	[22]
Caligus chelifer Wilson, 1905	Brevoortia sp.; Trichiurus lepturus; Xiphias gladius	Tamaulipas, Gulf of Mexico	[21]
Caligus chorinemi Krøyer, 1863	Carangoides bartholomaei; Caranx crysos; C. hippos	Brazil	[20,26]
	Caranx caninus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican	[16]
Caligus confusus Pillai, 1961	Caranx caninus; Coryphaena hippurus; Elagatis bipinnulata	Pacific coast of Panama	[7]
	Seriola sp.	Pacific coast of Colombia	[7]
	Caranx caninus; C. caballus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
		Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus constrictus Heller, 1865	Caranx caninus	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Caligus coryphaenae Streenstrup & Lütken, 1861	Katsuwonus pelamis	Peru and Venezuela	[7]
	Katsuwonus pelamis; Seriola lalandi	Ecuador	[7]
	Katsuwonus pelamis; Thunnus alalunga; T. albacares; T. obesus	Brazil	[20]
	Acanthocybium sp.; Euthynnus alletteratus; Euthynnus sp.; Sarda sp.; Scomberomorus sp.; Thunnus sp.	Colombia	[27]
	Acanthocybium solandri; Echeneis sp.; Thunnus obesus	Tropical eastern Pacific
	Sarda sp.	Pacific coast of Panama	[7]
	Coryphaena hippurus	Cuba	[28]
Caligus debueni Stuardo & Fagetti, 1961	Merluccius gayi gayi	Chile	[22]
	Merluccius gayi peruanus	Callao, Peru	[29]
Caligus diaphanus Nordmann, 1832	Lutjanus peru	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
	Lutjanus argentiventris; L. guttatus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus elongatus Nordmann, 1832	Sphoeroides annulatus	Sonora, Gulf of California	[21]
Caligus evelynae Suárez-Morales, Camisotti & Martín, 2012	Plankton samples	Venezuela	[30]
Caligus fistulariae Yamaguti, 1936	Aulostomus chinensis; Fistularia commersonii	Chile	[22]
Caligus flexispina Lewis, 1964	Chaetodipterus faber; Mugil sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Acanthurus leucopareius; Aulostomus chinensis; Fistularia commersonii	Chile	[22]
Caligus haemulonis Krøyer, 1863	Anchoa marinii; Archosargus rhomboidalis; Aspistor luniscutis; Chaetodipterus faber; Genidens barbus; Haemulon steindachneri; Menticirrhus americanus; Micropogonias furnieri; Pagrus pagrus; Paralonchurus brasiliensis; Prionotus punctatus; Orthopristis ruber	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Bagre marinus; Haemulon plumierii; H. sciurus	Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico	[21]
Caligus hoplognathi Yamaguti & Yamasu, 1959	Caranx caninus; C. caballus; Tylosurus pacificus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
	Caranx caballus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus irritans Heller, 1865	Serranus sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus itacurussensis Luque & Cezar, 2000	Anchoa marinii; Atherinella brasiliensis	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Tylosurus pacificus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus lalandei Barnard, 1948	Seriola lalandi	Chile	[22]
		Baja California, Mexican Pacific	[21]
Caligus latigenitalis Shiino, 1954	Caranx caballus; Kyphosus elegans; Lutjanus argentiventris; Prionurus punctatus; Tylosurus pacificus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus littoralis Luque & Cezar, 2000	Atherinella brasiliensis	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus lobodes (Quidor, 1913)	Sphyraena barracuda	Colombia	[27]
		Villa Clara, Cuba	[28]
Caligus longipedis Bassett-Smith, 1898	Caranx caninus; C. lugubris	Mexican Pacific	[16,21]
	Haemulon sciurus	Belize	[23]
	Anisotremus virginicus; Conodon nobilis; Selene setapinnis; S. vomer	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20,23]
	Carangoides bartholomaei	Península de Guanahacabibes, Cuba	[28]
Caligus macarovi Gusev, 1951	Cololabis sp.	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Caligus malabaricus Pillai, 1961	Tylosurus acus acus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus mutabilis Wilson, 1905	Archosargus rhomboidalis; Chaetodipterus faber; Scomberomorus brasiliensis; S. maculatus; Trachinotus goodei	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Acanthocybium sp.; Euthynnus sp.; Sarda sp.; Scomberomorus sp.; Thunnus sp.	Colombia	[27]
	Balistes sp.; Calamus brachysomus; Centropomus sp.; Chaetodipterus zonatus; Epinephelus labriformis; Hoplopagrus guentherii; Katsuwonus pelamis; Kyphosus elegans; Lutjanus guttatus; L. peru; Menticirrhus undulatus; Microlepidotus brevipinnis; Mugil cephalus; Paralabrax clathratus; P. maculatofasciatus; P. nebulifer; Sarda chiliensis; Scomberomorus sierra; Selene orstedii	Mexican Pacific	[16,21]
	Scomber japonicus	Campeche, Gulf of Mexico	[21]
	Epinephelus labriformis; Eucinostomus entomelas; Haemulopsis axillaris; Paralabrax callaensis	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus ocyurus Cressey, 1991	Chromis cyanea; C. multilineata	Artemisa and La Habana, Cuba	[28]
Caligus omissus Cressey & Cressey, 1980	Scomberomorus sierra	Colombia	[27]
		Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
	Scomberomorus concolor; S. sierra	Mexican Pacific	[16,21]
Caligus patulus Wilson, 1937	Chanos chanos	Panama	[7]
Caligus pelamydis Krøyer, 1863	Euthynnus alletteratus; Pomatomus saltatrix; Sarda sarda; Scomber japonicus; Scomberomorus sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Acanthocybium sp.; Euthynnus sp.; Sarda sp.; Scomberomorus sp.; Thunnus sp.	Colombia	[27]
	Scomberomorus cavalla	Veracruz, Gulf of Mexico	[21]
Caligus praetextus Bere, 1936	Unidentified	Gulf of Mexico	[26]
	Aspistor luniscutis; Centropomus undecimalis; Chaetodipterus faber; Cynoscion sp.; Genidens barbus; Orthopristis ruber; Scomberomorus sp.; Umbrina sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[21]
Caligus productus Dana, 1852	Acanthocybium solandri; Auxis sp.; Balistes polylepis; Calamus brachysomus; Centropomus sp.; Coryphaena hippurus; Coryphaena sp.; Katsuwonus pelamis; Lutjanus sp.; Paralabrax clathratus; P. maculatofasciatus; Sarda chiliensis; Seriola lalandi; Scomberomorus sierra; Sphyraena argentea	Mexican Pacific	[7,21]
	Acanthocybium solandri; Katsuwonus pelamis; Seriola lalandi; Thunnus obesus; T. thynnus	Gulf of Mexico	[7,21]
	Acanthistius pictus; Euthynnus sp.; Sarda sp.; Scomberomorus sp.; Thunnus sp.	Colombia	[27]
	Auxis sp.; Sarda orientalis	Pacific coast of Panama	[7]
	Katsuwonus pelamis; Thunnus albacares	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Thunnus obesus	Chile	[22]
	Katsuwonus pelamis	Venezuela	[7]
	Coryphaena hippurus	Cuba	[28]
Caligus quadratus Shiino, 1954	Paralabrax humeralis; Stellifer minor; Trachinotus paitensis	Peru	[7]
	Acanthistius pictus; Paralabrax humeralis	Chile	[7,22]
	Coryphaena hippurus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus robustus Bassett-Smith, 1989	Caranx hippos; Caranx latus; Oligoplites palometa; O. saliens; O. saurus; Selene setapinnis; S. vomer	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Caranx caballus; C. caninus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
	Caranx caballus; C. caninus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus rogercresseyi Boxshall & Bravo, 2000	Eleginops maclovinus; Odontesthes regia; Oncorhynchus kisutch; O. mykiss; Paralichthys microps; Salmo salar	Chile	[22]
	Odontesthes argentinensis	Argentina	[31]
Caligus rufimaculatus Wilson, 1905	Acanthostracion quadricornis; Centropristis striata; Diplodus holbrookii; Eucinostomus gula; Haemulon plumierii; Lagodon rhomboides; Lutjanus synagris; Nicholsina usta usta; Orthopristis chrysoptera; Stephanolepis hispidus;	Gulf of Mexico	[26]
	Oligoplites palometa; O. saliens; Pomatomus saltatrix	Rio of Janeiro	[20]
	Plankton samples	Yucatán, Gulf of Mexico	[21]
	Sphyraena barracuda	Archipelago, Cuba	[28]
	Caranx caballus; Haemulon steindachneri; Lutjanus argentiventris; Mugil cephalus; Xenichthys xanti	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus schistonyx Wilson, 1905	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sclerotinosus Roubal, Armitage & Rohde, 1983	Lutjanus colorado; L. guttatus; L. peru	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
Caligus sepetibensis Luque & Takemoto, 1996	Haemulon steindachneri; Orthopristis ruber; Pagrus pagrus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus af. sepetibensis Luque & Takemoto, 1996	Polydactylus approximans; Xenichthys xanti	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus serratus Shiino, 1965	Calamus brachysomus; Caranx caballus; C. caninus; Cynoscion xanthulus; Elops affinis; Haemulon steindachneri; Kyphosus elegans; Lutjanus argentiventris; Microlepidotus brevipinnis; Scomberomorus sierra; Sphoeroides annulatus; Tylosurus pacificus	Mexican Pacific	[16,21,32]
Caligus similis Ho, Kim & Nagasawa, 2005	Albula vulpes	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus tenax Heller, 1865	Caranx hippos	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus tenuifurcatus Wilson, 1937	Centropomus robalito; C. viridis; Lutjanus argentiventris; Nematistius pectoralis	Mexican Pacific	[16,21]
Caligus cf. tenuifurcatus Wilson, 1937	Balistes polylepis	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus teres Wilson, 1905	Callorhinchus callorynchus; Eleginops maclovinus; Odontesthes sp.; Oncorhynchus kisutch; O. mykiss	Chile	[22]
Caligus tetrodontis Barnard, 1948	Plankton samples	Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil	[20]
Caligus trachynoti Heller, 1865	Trachinotus sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Trachinotus carolinus	Gulf of Mexico	[21]
Caligus tylosuri (Rangnekar, 1956)	Tylosurus pacificus	Bahía de Chamela, Mexican Pacific	[16]
		Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus undulatus Shen & Li, 1959	Plankton samples	Río Grande do Sul, Brazil	[20]
	Unidentified	Yucatán, Gulf of Mexico	[33]
Caligus xystercus Cressey, 1991	Anisotremus virginicus	Belize	[23]
	Anisotremus virginicus; Conodon nobilis	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[23]
Caligus sp. D Cressey & Collete, 1970	Tylosurus acus acus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Aluterus monoceros	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Aspistor luniscutis	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Cynoscion guatucupa	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Mugil curema	Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Paralichthys orbignyanus	Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Peprilus paru	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Caligus sp.	Bovichtus chilensis; Cilus gilbert; Merluccius gayi gayi; Trachurus murphyi	Chile	[22]
Caligus sp.	Mugil curema	Sinaloa, Mexican Pacific	[21]
Caligus sp. 1	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sp. 2	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sp. 3	Lutjanus argentiventris; Lutjanus guttatus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sp. 4	Epinephelus analogus; Paralabrax callaensis	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sp. 5	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Caligus sp. 6	Prionotus stephanophrys	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Euryphorus brachypterus (Gerstaecker, 1853)	Thunnus alalunga; T. albacares; T. obesus	Brazil	[20]
Euryphorus nordmanni Milne Edwards, 1840	Coryphaena hippurus	Río de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
		Colombia	[27]
Euryphorus suarezi Morales-Serna, Rodríguez-Santiago & Gómez	Aetobatus narinari	Gulf of Mexico	[34]
Gloiopotes huttoni (Thomson, 1890)	Istiophorus platypterus; Makaira sp.	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Gloiopotes hygomianus Steenstrup & Lütken, 1861	Acanthocybium solandri	Brazil	[20]
		Mexican Pacific	[21]
Gloiopotes ornatus Wilson, 1905	Kajikia audax	Brazil	[20]
Lepeophtheirus alvaroi Suárez-Morales & Gasca, 2012	Plankton samples	Isla del Coco, Costa Rica	[9]
Lepeophtheirus bagri Dana, 1849	Aspistor luniscutis; Genidens barbus; Paralichthys sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Lepeophtheirus chilensis Wilson, 1905	Cheilodactylus variegatus; Girella laevifrons; Graus nigra; Sebastes oculatus; Sebastes sp.; Semicossyphus darwini	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus clarionensis Shiino, 1959	Xanthichthys lineopunctatus	Isla Clarión, Mexican Pacific	[21]
Lepeophtheirus curtus (Wilson, 1913)	Mycteroperca bonaci	Espírito Santo, Brazil	[20]
		Colombia (Atlantic?)	[27]
		Villa Clara, Cuba	[28]
Lepeophtheirus dissimulatus Wilson, 1905	Semicossyphus darwini	Chile	[22]
	Mycteroperca bonaci	Colombia	[27]
	Mycteroperca bonaci	Península de Guanahacabibes, Cuba	[28]
	Ariopsis guatemalensis; Cirrhitus rivulatus; Hypsopsetta guttulata; Merluccius productos; Paralabrax nebulifer; Paralichthys californicus; Prionurus punctatus; Sphyraena argéntea;	Mexican Pacific	[16,21]
	Bodianus diplotaenia; Prionotus stephanophrys	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Lepeophtheirus edwardsi Wilson, 1905	Hippoglossina macrops; Paralichthys adspersus; P. microps	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus eminens Wilson, 1944	Makaira nigricans	Baja California, Mexico	[21]
Lepeophtheirus frecuens Castro-Romero & Baeza-Kuroki, 1984	Acanthistius pictus; Aplodactylus punctatus; Cheilodactylus variegatus; Girella laevifrons; Oplegnathus insignis; Semicossyphus darwini	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus cf. goniistii Yamaguti, 1936	Pristigenys serrula	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Lepeophtheirus interitus Wilson, 1921	Polyprion oxygeneios	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus monacanthus Heller, 1865	Ariopsis felis; A. luniscutis; Bagre marinus; Carlarius heudelotii; Genidens barbus	Espírito Santo, Brazil	[20]
Lepeophtheirus mugiloidis Villalba, 1986	Eleginops maclovinus; Pinguipes chilensis	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus nordmanni (Milne-Edwards, 1840)	Mola mola; M. ramsayi	Chile	[22]
	Mola mola	Venezuela	[35]
Lepeophtheirus parvus Wilson, 1908	Mola mola	Isla San Benito, Mexican Pacific	[21]
	Orthopristis chalceus	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Lepeophtheirus rhinobati Luque, Chaves & Cezar, 1999	Rhinobatos sp.	Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil	[20]
Lepeophtheirus selkirki Atria, 1969	Polyprion oxygeneios	Chile	[35]
Lepeophtheirus simplex Ho, Gómez & Fajer-Avila 2001	Sphoeroides annulatus	Sinaloa, Mexican Pacific	[21]
Lepeophtheirus thompsoni Baird, 1850	Atractoscion nobilis	Mexican Pacific	[21]
Lepeophtheirus yanezi Stuardo & Fagetti, 1961	Genypterus chilensis; G. maculatus	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus zbigniewi Castro-Romero & Baeza-Kuroki, 1981	Auchenionchus microcirrhis	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus sp.	Bovichtus chilensis; Brama australis; Cilus gilberti; Eleginops maclovinus; Hippoglossina macrops; Notothenia c.f. angustata; Scartichthys viridis; Sebastes oculatus	Chile	[22]
Lepeophtheirus sp. 1	Lutjanus argentiventris	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Lepeophtheirus sp. 2	Prionotus stephanophrys	Jaramijó, Ecuador	[18]
Metacaligus rufus (Wilson, 1908)	Merluccius sp.; Oligoplites palometa; O. saliens; Scomberomorus sp.; Selene vomer; Trichiurus lepturus; Umbrina sp.	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
	Unidentified	Yucatán, Gulf of Mexico	[33]
Metacaligus trichiuri (Krøyer, 1863)	Trichiurus sp.	Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil	[20]
	Trichiurus lepturus	Uruguay and Venezuela	[7]
		Argentina	[31]
Metacaligus yucatanensis Suárez-Morales, Kim I.H. & Escamilla, 2012	Unidentified	Yucatán, Gulf of Mexico	[33]
Metacaligus sp.	Tylosurus acus acus	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]
Parapetalus occidentalis Wilson, 1908	Rachycentron canadum	Gulf of Mexico	[7]
Tuxophorus caligodes Wilson, 1908	Mugil liza; Oligoplites palometa; O. saliens; O. saurus; Scomberomorus sp.; Selene vomer; Trachinotus goodei	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	[20]