Title: Ectoparasites fauna of goldfish (Carassius auratus) in north Iran
Abstract: The present studywas carried out to survey ectoparasites fauna of gold fish (Carassius auratus) in Mazandaran province (Iran) from April 2009 to March 2010. A total of 200 samples were obtained from 10 ornamental fish supply centers and transferred alive to the laboratory. In this study, the following ectoparasites were isolated: Ichthyophthirius multifillis , Trichodina spp., Gyrodactylus spp., Dactylogyrus vastator, Dactylogyrus baueri and Argulus coregoni. The results revealedthat 28.5% of sampled goldfish were infested with ectoparasites .The frequency of protozoan infestations were 15% (9%I. multifillis and 6% Trichodina spp.), the frequency of monogenean ectoparasite was 12.5% (5% Gyrodactylus spp., 5% D. vastator and 2.5% D. baueri) and that of crustaceans (A. coregoni) was 1%. The most frequently reported infestation was due to I. multifillis causative agent of white spot disease.Enhancing the health management through improving water quality and bio-security is the most effective way to prevent the parasite infestations.