<i>Trinigyrus peregrinus</i>, New Parasite Species First Identified in 2015 by Hiroshima University (IMAGE)

Hiroshima University

<i>Trinigyrus peregrinus</i>, New Parasite Species First Identified in 2015 by Hiroshima University

Caption

Masato Nitta, a Ph.D. student in the Graduate School of Biosphere Science, named the species "peregrinus" meaning "foreign or exotic" in Latin, referencing the likelihood that the species is not native to Japan. An average fully grown adult's body is approximately 0.65 millimeters (647 micrometers) long. For comparison, a Japanese 1-yen coin is about 1.5 millimeters thick. The pink color of the image comes from a staining solution (alum carmine) used to examine the parasite under a microscope. The parasite infects the vermiculated sailfin catfish, which is native to Brazil and now common as an invasive species in the freshwater rivers of Okinawa, Japan.

Credit

Image by Masato Nitta, Hiroshima University.

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Image may only be re-used with attribution to Masato Nitta, Hiroshima University.

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