Description of new myxozoan parasite Myxobolus awadhii sp. nov from the gills of freshwater catfish Clarias batrachus Linn.

Parasitic infestations are one of the major problems in freshwater fish production. Clarias batrachus Linnaeus, 1758 (Clariidae) is a commercially important native catfish mainly used for food as it has very high iron content and other minerals. Unfortunately, it is difficult to breed in captivity and is highly prone to parasitic infections particularly the Myxobolus sp. The present article discusses a new species of Myxobolus identified as Myxobolus awadhii from the gills of C. batrachus. Plasmodia were found on the gill filaments with the intensity of infection to be moderate as indicated by gill plasmodial index (GPI = 6). The mature myxospores were oval to ellipsoidal in shape measuring 8.82-11.68 (10.57 ± 0.50) × 5.76-7.37 (6.70 ± 0.36) μm in size. The present species was compared with species found from the same host and other resembling species as M. acanthorhodi, M. bhadurius, M. bilineatum, M. chrysichthyi. Present article deals with morphological and morphometric description of M. awadhii sp. nov. Morphological comparisons of the mature myxospores were done with the similar myxospores and species reported earlier from C. batrachus.