Trifur tortuosus in whole Argentine hake

Jelena Vranešević; Suzana Vidaković Knežević; Dubravka Milanov; Stefan Dončić; Nikolina Novakov

doi:10.18485/meattech.2025.66.3.13

Jelena Vranešević Novi Sad Scientific Veterinary Institute, Novi Sad, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1202-6964
Suzana Vidaković Knežević Novi Sad Scientific Veterinary Institute, Novi Sad, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7711-3917
Dubravka Milanov Novi Sad Scientific Veterinary Institute, Novi Sad, Serbia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1987-8211
Stefan Dončić Novi Sad Scientific Veterinary Institute, Novi Sad, Serbia https://orcid.org/0009-0001-0626-9815
Nikolina Novakov https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3951-4282

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18485/meattech.2025.66.3.13

Keywords: fish, parasitic copepod, official import control

Abstract

This case report presents the basic parameters used in the identification of the species Trifur tortuosus, a parasitic copepod of the genus Trifur, family Pennellidae, and relevant literature data on this little-known parasite of marine fish. The parasite was identified in whole Argentine hake, with the fish delivered to our laboratory during the official import control of foodstuffs in 2024. Trifur is a relatively large ectoparasite and as such is easy to see, but this case report is the first time Trifur were detected in marine fish that were examined in our laboratory. Several species of marine fish in the Atlantic-Pacific region of South America are natural hosts of this parasite. As the import of fish and fish products is increasingly intensive, and Trifur spp. could become more frequent in many commercially important fish species, we believe that the presentation of the case can be useful in the practical work of laboratories that conduct examinations of animal origin foods in our region.