Morphological data and first record of Lecithocladium excisum (Rudolphi, 1819) (Digenea; Hemiuridae) in the new host Capros aper (Linnaeus, 1758) (Caproidae) off the Algerian coast in the Mediterranean Sea

This study contributes to the knowledge of digenean diversity by documenting newly recorded species in Algerian waters, either through new host associations or from previously unreported localities.

The trematode Lecithocladium excisum (Rudolphi, 1819), originally described from Scomber scombrus Linnaeus, 1758 (Scombridae) off Rimini, Italy, is a cosmopolitan species widely distributed across tropical and temperate marine environments. It has been reported from the same host in the Atlantic Ocean and in various parts of the Mediterranean Sea, including the Turkish coast.

Lecithocladium excisum exhibits a euryxenous host specificity, infecting a wide range of teleost fishes across multiple families such as Stromateidae, Carangidae, Mullidae, Scombridae, Triglidae, Sparidae, Pristigasteridae, Bothidae, and Nemipteridae.
In the present study, L. excisum is reported for the first time in Algerian waters, parasitizing a new host species, Capros aper (Linnaeus, 1758), from the family Caproidae Bonaparte, 1835. Morphological data are provided to support this new host and locality record, enriching the parasitological inventory of Mediterranean marine fishes.