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Amphipod epibionts of the sea turtles Caretta caretta and Chelonia mydas from the Gulf of Gabès (central Mediterranean)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 May 2010

Rym Zakhama-Sraieb*
Affiliation:
Unité de Recherche de Biologie Animale et Systématique Evolutive, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Manar II, Tunisie
Sami Karaa
Affiliation:
Faculté des Sciences de Sfax, BP 802, Sfax 3018, Tunisie
Mohamed Nejmeddine Bradai
Affiliation:
Institut National des Sciences et Technologie de la Mer -INSTM- BP1035, Sfax 3018, Tunisie
Imed Jribi
Affiliation:
Faculté des Sciences de Sfax, BP 802, Sfax 3018, Tunisie
Faouzia Charfi-Cheikhrouha
Affiliation:
Unité de Recherche de Biologie Animale et Systématique Evolutive, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Manar II, Tunisie
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: R. Zakhama-Sraieb, Unité de Recherche de Biologie Animale et Systématique Evolutive, Faculté des Sciences de Tunis, 2092 Manar II, Tunisie email: [email protected]
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Abstract

The amphipod (Crustacea: Peracarida) epibionts of the sea turtles Caretta caretta and Chelonia mydas were studied in the Gulf of Gabès. A total of eight amphipod species were identified, with Hyale grimaldii and Caprella andreae by far the most common. Among these species, Ericthonius punctatus and Ampithoe riedli are recorded for the first time as epibionts of Caretta caretta and Chelonia mydas, respectively, in the Mediterranean Sea.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2010

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References

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