An Investigation on the ecology and in vitro culture of Ligula intestinalis in Acanthobrama marmid (Heckel, 1843) caught from Keban dame lake

In the present study, ecology and seasonal distribution of Ligula intestinalis in Acanthobrama marmid caught from the Koçkale Region of Keban Dam Lake were investigated. This study carried out monthly between November 1998 and October 1999, and 954 fish were used for the study. 7.54% of the fish were found to be infected. Infection rate was changed significantly amoung the month (p<0.05). In February and August infection rate was %16.9 and 23.11 respectively, but no infected fish were observed in January, May and June. In addition, there was a significant differences in infection between different age groups infected fish (p<0.05). In vitro culture of Ligula intestinalis was tried in laboratory conditions. The devolopment of Ligula intestinalis was followed in different culture mediums. However, no eggs occurrence were observed in the plerocercoid larval fragman. KEY WORDS: Keban Dam Lake, Acanthobrama marmid, Ligula intestinalis, ecology, in vitro.