On the occurrence of the digenean Otodistomum veliporum in the spiracle of the kitefin shark Dalatias licha

Otodistomum veliporum (Creplin, 1837) is a digenean trematode belonging to Family Azygiidae. It is a parasite present in body cavity, spiral valve and stomach of elasmobranchs and holocephalans. The colour of this helminth varies from opaque white to yellow and the maximum length is 80 mm. All members of Otodistomum genus were revised and redescribed by GIBSON & BRAY (1977). This genus has been recorded from sub-tropical, temperate, sub-Artic and subAntartic regions (THRELFALL & CARVAJAL, 1986; ZDZITOWIECKI & PISANO, 1996). GIBSON & BRAY (1977) reported the species Otodistomum veliporum for the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, in particular as host in bony fish and elasmobranchs from waters off Sicily. However, little is known about this species, particularly the life cycle. Here we report for the first time the presence of this parasite in the spiracle of the kitefin shark Dalatias licha (Bonnaterre, 1788), which is a moderate sized deep-water shark unevenly distributed on continental and insular shelves and slopes in warm-temperate and tropical areas at depths of 37 to 1,800 m in the North and Central Atlantic, western Indian Ocean and Western and Central Pacific Ocean.