136
MARINE MOLLUSCS AS HOSTS FOR SYMBIOSES
common diet. In Hawaii and other islands of the Pacific, the limpet,
Patella hawaiiensis, and related species are served in a traditional dish
eaten a t Polynesian banquets or “ luaus ”. Similarly, on the continental
United States, various estuarine molluscs are utilized as food by various
ethnic groups. For example, although the “ Yankee ” New Englander
seldom eats the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis, this pelecypod is harvested
and shipped to the markets of New York City where it is considered a
delicacy by people of Italian descent. Again, the common periwinkle,
Littorina littorea, has been eaten in England for hundreds of years. For
the year 1867, according to Zinn (1964), 76 000 baskets of this snail,
weighing 1 900 tons and worth upwards of E50 000 were consumed in
London alone. Littorina spp. are also eaten in Scotland, Ireland,
China, Japan, and in the United States, where they are considered a
delicacy by people of southern European descent.
One could cite numerous other examples of marine molluscs which
are used in relatively large quantities throughout the world as food.
Indeed, molluscs represent one group of marine animals which is already
serving to fulfill the need for proteins by a large percentage of the world’s
population.
As the result of the large number of species of marine molluscs that
are used as food, some globally, others in restricted areas, the major
difficulty encountered during the compilation of the following information was to decide which hosts to include and thus limit the number of
parasites to be considered to a reasonable number. The decision was
made to include those species mentioned in the preceding paragraphs
except for the cephalopods, periwinkles and limpets, and a few other
related species. Information pertaining to the parasites of Littorina
spp., especially the helminths of those occurring in British waters, can
be found in Fretter and Graham’s (1962) review. If no parasites are
listed for certain of the other species mentioned, it is because none is
yet known.
As stated in Chapter 3, as a consequence of the economic importance
of shellfisheries and possible public health implications, the parasites
of economically important molluscs have been receiving increasingly
more attention although a great deal remains to be learned. It is with
the shellfishery biologist in mind that the following information has
been compiled. Professional parasitologists, who generally have access
to more adequate library facilities, may find the information elementary, but even so some may find the information useful, especially those
being introduced to marine parasites for the first time.
Relative to the public health importance of the parasites considered
herein, there is no information available on the majority of these. The
MARINE MOLLUSCS AS HOSTS FOR SYMBIOSES
common diet. In Hawaii and other islands of the Pacific, the limpet,
Patella hawaiiensis, and related species are served in a traditional dish
eaten a t Polynesian banquets or “ luaus ”. Similarly, on the continental
United States, various estuarine molluscs are utilized as food by various
ethnic groups. For example, although the “ Yankee ” New Englander
seldom eats the blue mussel, Mytilus edulis, this pelecypod is harvested
and shipped to the markets of New York City where it is considered a
delicacy by people of Italian descent. Again, the common periwinkle,
Littorina littorea, has been eaten in England for hundreds of years. For
the year 1867, according to Zinn (1964), 76 000 baskets of this snail,
weighing 1 900 tons and worth upwards of E50 000 were consumed in
London alone. Littorina spp. are also eaten in Scotland, Ireland,
China, Japan, and in the United States, where they are considered a
delicacy by people of southern European descent.
One could cite numerous other examples of marine molluscs which
are used in relatively large quantities throughout the world as food.
Indeed, molluscs represent one group of marine animals which is already
serving to fulfill the need for proteins by a large percentage of the world’s
population.
As the result of the large number of species of marine molluscs that
are used as food, some globally, others in restricted areas, the major
difficulty encountered during the compilation of the following information was to decide which hosts to include and thus limit the number of
parasites to be considered to a reasonable number. The decision was
made to include those species mentioned in the preceding paragraphs
except for the cephalopods, periwinkles and limpets, and a few other
related species. Information pertaining to the parasites of Littorina
spp., especially the helminths of those occurring in British waters, can
be found in Fretter and Graham’s (1962) review. If no parasites are
listed for certain of the other species mentioned, it is because none is
yet known.
As stated in Chapter 3, as a consequence of the economic importance
of shellfisheries and possible public health implications, the parasites
of economically important molluscs have been receiving increasingly
more attention although a great deal remains to be learned. It is with
the shellfishery biologist in mind that the following information has
been compiled. Professional parasitologists, who generally have access
to more adequate library facilities, may find the information elementary, but even so some may find the information useful, especially those
being introduced to marine parasites for the first time.
Relative to the public health importance of the parasites considered
herein, there is no information available on the majority of these. The