Occurrence of Staurosoma parasiticum in populations of Anemonia viridis in the NW Iberian Peninsula

During almost one year monitoring monthly four populations of Anemonia viridis at different sites on the Galician coast (NW Spain), specimens of the copepod Staurosoma parasiticum were observed inside the anemones. Few data exists about the distribution and life cycle of this species. Data on the life cycle of the copepods and the effects of their presence in specimens of A. viridis are presented. According to our observations, the presence of S. parisiticum increases in spring and at the beginning of summer, a period that coincides with the main spawning season of A. viridis and with the presence of nauplius larvae of S. parasiticum. Variation in the infection-rate was observed between populations, showing that the abundance of the copepod is not homogeneous along the coast.