Comprehensive annotated checklist of monogenean diversity and distribution in Algerian marine fish.

Abstract

A comprehensive checklist of monogenean parasites from marine fish in Algeria was compiled by reviewing the entire available literature, resulting in a detailed parasite-host and host-parasite list. This checklist includes 156 species across 71 genera and 23 families of monogeneans, with 136 species identified to the species level, while the remaining 20 species are identified only to the genus (19 species) or subfamily level (1 species). These parasites have been reported from 82 marine fish hosts, spanning 34 families: 15 species of Elasmobranchii, 1 of Holocephali, and 66 of Teleostei. The highest number of monogenean species was found on Teleostei (128), followed by Elasmobranchii (26), and Holocephali (2). The family Diplectanidae Monticelli, 1903 is the most prevalent, encompassing 43 species, followed by Microcotylidae Taschenberg, 1879 with 27 species. Among the most diverse genera are Lamellodiscus Johnston & Tiegs, 1922 and Microcotyle Van Beneden & Hesse, 1863, with the latter's species, Microcotyle erythrini, Van Beneden & Hesse, 1863 being the most encountered species. The class Teleostei has been the most extensively studied, with the Sparidae Rafinesque, 1818 family receiving the most attention, particularly Boops boops (Linnaeus) as the most cited fish species. Notably, Diplodus vulgaris (Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire) and Diplodus sargus (Linnaeus) exhibit high species richness. The checklist also identified seven Monogenea species, including Atriaster maillardi López-Román & De Armas Hernández, 1989, newly recorded in the Mediterranean. This checklist provides an up-to-date summary of Monogenea diversity in Algerian marine fish, reflecting nearly three decades of detailed taxonomic research. It highlights the current understanding of these parasites and underscores the need for continued research to fully explore the diversity of monogenean parasites in Algerian fish fauna.