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Patterns in helminth communities: why are birds and fish different?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

C. R. Kennedy ,
A. O. Bush  and
J. M. Aho
C. R. Kennedy*
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, The University, Exeter EX4 4PS, UK
A. O. Bush
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Brandon University, Brandon, Manitoba R7A 6A9, Canada
J. M. Aho
Affiliation:
Savannah River Ecology Laboratory, University of Georgia, Drawer E, Aiken, S. Carolina 29801, USA
*
Arrangement of authors’ names is for convenience and does not imply seniority.
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Summary

Recently, some authors (Kennedy, 1981; Price & Clancy, 1983) have argued that there are fundamental differences between the communities of helminths in fish and bird hosts. Such differences are foreshadowed by the work of Dogiel (1964) and are apparent from survey data (e.g. Threlfall, 1967; Bakke, 1972; Hair & Holmes, 1975 on birds, and compare Chubb, 1963; Mishra & Chubb, 1969; Wootten, 1973; Ingham & Dronen, 1980 on fish). Questions still remain, however, as to whether the distinctions are truly justified and whether the differences are really fundamental. In this paper, we address these questions by examining helminth diversity in a series of hosts. We then discuss and provide explanations for the observed differences.

Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 93 , Issue 1 , August 1986 , pp. 205 - 215
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1986

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