Microcotyle helotes facts for kids

Microcotyle helotes is a tiny worm that lives on the gills of certain fish in the ocean. It's a type of parasite, which means it lives on or inside another animal and gets its food from it. This worm belongs to a group called monogeneans and is part of the Microcotylidae family.

Discovering Microcotyle helotes

Scientists give names to all living things, and this is called taxonomy. Microcotyle helotes was first found and described by a scientist named Sandars in 1944. They found 11 of these tiny worms living on the gills of a fish called the eastern striped Grunter (Helotes sexlineatus). These fish were caught near Safety Bay in Western Australia.

Over the years, other scientists have studied Microcotyle helotes again. For example, Dillon & Hargis looked at it closely in 1985. Williams also studied it in 1991, finding it on the eastern striped Grunter and another fish called Pelsartia humeralis. Even with small differences noted, scientists agreed they were the same species.

What Microcotyle helotes Looks Like

Microcotyle helotes has a body shape similar to other worms in its group. It has a long, somewhat flat body that is symmetrical, meaning both sides are the same. The front part of its body holds most of its important organs.

The back part is called a haptor. This haptor is also symmetrical and has 62 special gripping parts called clamps. These clamps are arranged in two rows, one on each side. The clamps help the worm hold tightly onto the fish's gill. At the very front of the worm, there are two mouth suckers that also help it attach.

Inside, it has a mouth at the front, a round pharynx (like a throat), and an oesophagus (food tube). This tube splits into two main branches that go all the way to the back, with many smaller branches to help digest food. Like many worms, each adult Microcotyle helotes has both male and female reproductive parts.

Where Microcotyle helotes Lives

The eastern striped Grunter, Helotes sexlineatus, is a main host for Microcotyle helotes.

The sea trumpeter Terapon theraps can also be a host.

The main fish that Microcotyle helotes lives on is the eastern striped Grunter (Helotes sexlineatus). This fish belongs to a family called Terapontidae. Scientists have also found this worm on other fish from the same family, like Pelsartia humeralis and the sea trumpeter Terapon theraps.

These worms were first found on fish caught off the coast of Western Australia. They have also been reported in the South China Sea, showing they live in different ocean areas.