THE PARASITIC TURBELLARIAN URASTOMA CYPRINAE (PLATYHELMINTHES, URASTOMIDAE) FROM BLUE MUSSEL MYTILUS-GALLOPROVINCIALIS IN SPAIN - OCCURRENCE AND PATHOLOGY
Jaf. Robledo et al., THE PARASITIC TURBELLARIAN URASTOMA CYPRINAE (PLATYHELMINTHES, URASTOMIDAE) FROM BLUE MUSSEL MYTILUS-GALLOPROVINCIALIS IN SPAIN - OCCURRENCE AND PATHOLOGY, Diseases of aquatic organisms, 18(3), 1994, pp. 203-210
The turbellarian Urastoma cyprinae (Graff, 1882) Graff, 1903 was found
inhabiting the mantle cavity between the lamellae of the demibranchs
of mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis Lamarck cultured in Galicia (NW S
pain). Heavily infested mussels were recognized by the presence of whi
te spots in the gills. The affected area exhibited disarrangement of t
he gill filaments. The space between 2 lamellae was considerably reduc
ed and the blood sinuses were wider in the unhealthy area than in the
healthy area. The turbellarian also induced a heavy infiltration by bl
ood cells and subsequent necrosis of the gill tissues. Routine parasit
ological studies showed that this parasite was first detected in the G
alician region in early 1989. In 1993, U. cyprinae appeared to be pres
ent in the 3 main production rias in the Galician region, affecting bo
th natural beds and rafted mussels. U. cyprinae could be considered a
potential threat to mussel culture.