Fish lice, class Branchiura, are flattened, disk-shaped crustaceans that live as external parasites on the skin and gills of freshwater and marine fish, attaching with a pair of large sucker-like discs and piercing the host with a sharp stylet to feed on blood and tissue fluid. Unlike most parasitic crustaceans, fish lice remain highly mobile throughout their life and can swim freely between hosts, and heavy infestations are a recognized problem in fish farming, causing skin damage, secondary infection and reduced growth in affected stock.
Facts
Classification
System (Realm) Scientific Name Connections
Child Taxon Of
Source Wikidata: Fish Louse
Sources
1. Wikidata: Fish Louse
- Wikidata Q18196331, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)
- Wikipedia 'Argulidae': parasitic crustaceans in the class Ichthyostraca
- Child Taxon Of: Arthropoda, Wikidata parent-taxon (P171) chain
View the Source2. Wikipedia: Argulidae
diet-classification (MediaWiki batch-API article extract states it plainly)
The family Argulidae, whose members are commonly known as carp lice or fish lice, (not to be confused with Caligidae, also commonly referred to as sea lice) are parasitic crustaceans in the class Ichthyostraca.
system (MediaWiki batch-API article extract states it plainly)
The family Argulidae, whose members are commonly known as carp lice or fish lice, (not to be confused with Caligidae, also commonly referred to as sea lice) are parasitic crustaceans in the class Ichthyostraca.
View the Source3. Fish louse (Britannica)
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