The use of parasites as biological tags for stock identification of blue jack mackerel, Trachurus picturatus, in the northeastern Atlantic waters

Abstract

The use of parasites as biological tags for discriminating stocks of blue jack mackerel, Trachurus picturatus (Osteichthyes, Carangidae), in the northeast Atlantic Ocean is assessed herein. In this study the following parasites have been selected as possible biological tags: roundworms Anisakis spp. (Nematoda: Anisakidae), spiny-headed worm Rhadinorhynchus sp. (Acanthocephala: Rhadinorhynchidae) and tapeworm Nybelinia sp. (Cestoda: Tentaculariidae). The distinctive pattern of infection of these parasite species point to a possible existence of, at least, two stocks of blue jack mackerel in the northeast Atlantic: one in Portuguese mainland waters, and another in Madeira and Canary archipelagos.