Population biology of Urocleidus adspectus Mueller, 1936 (Monogenea) on Perca flavescens in New Brunswick
The population biology of Urocleidus adspectus parasitizing gills of Perca flavescens in a small New Brunswick lake is described. The parasite has an annual cycle in which worms overwinter as inactive adults. In spring, they lay eggs and many worms die. A short generation time (14 days at 20 °C) allows transmission throughout summer and well into fall. Perch acquire infections during the first few months of life and thereafter annually lose and reacquire infections. The intensity of U. adspectus peaks during July and generally increases with age of the host. Length–frequency distributions of parasites on four host age-classes (1, 2, 3–4, and 5 and older) indicate that they grow larger on larger hosts. Seasonal monitoring of length–frequency distributions revealed that spring growth of overwintering worms and onset of spring invasion commence earlier on mature perch than on immature perch. The results are discussed in relation to our understanding of fish parasite populations in small lakes.