Fish Farmer’s Guide to Combating Parasitic Infections in European Sea Bass and Gilthead Sea Bream Aquaculture

In this guide, some of the main parasites causing diseases in ESB and GSB are illustrated in a concise and schematic way. This will enable fish farmers to find updated information on the biological cycle and routes of transmission, disease clinical presentation, diagnosis, main risk factors for parasite introduction and parasitic disease occurrence, as well as recommendations for their management and control. In particular, five parasites have been addressed: the dinoflagellate Amyloodinium ocellatum, responsible for amyloodiniosis in ESB and GSB; Enterospora nucleophila, which causes emaciative microsporidiosis in GSB; Enteromyxum leei, an enteric myxozoan that causes enteromyxosis in GSB; Sparicotyle chrysophrii, a gill monogenean responsible for sparicotylosis in GSB; and Ceratothoa oestroides, an isopod crustacean infecting ESB and, to a lesser extent, GSB. Diagrammatic charts of other ecto- and endo-parasites are also provided.