Morphological characters of two cymothoid isopods: Ceratothoa oestroides (risso, 1816) and ceratothoa parallela (otto, 1828) from Turkey

Abstract

This paper aims to present morphological characters of two species of cymothoid isopods, Ceratothoa oestroides and Ceratothoa parallela from Turkey. Although Ceratothoa species were previously reported by Turkish researchers, in particular, it is necessary to indicate to refer to the mouthparts and other body extremities of Turkish Ceratothoa species with photos and drawings. In addition, the pleopods 1 to 5 having peduncle medial margin with four hooks in Ceratothoa species which are found for the first time in this study as distinct from other studies. The detailed description of the morphological features of these two parasite species are given in the present article.