Thanks to high species diversity and a broad range of speciation mechanisms, cichlid fishes represent a textbook model in evolutionary biology. They are also of substantial economic value. Despite this importance, cichlid parasites remain understudied, although some are more diverse than their hosts. They may offer important insights into cichlid evolution and the evolution of host-parasite interactions. We review five major lines of research conducted on cichlid parasites so far: the study of parasite diversity and speciation; the role of parasites in cichlid diversification; the evolutionary ecology of host specificity; historical biogeography; and biological invasions. We call for more research in these areas and suggest approaches to valorise the potential that cichlid parasites hold for the study of evolutionary parasitology.

Department of Botany and Zoology Faculty of Science Masaryk University Kotlářská 2 CZ 611 37 Brno Czech Republic

Institut des Sciences de l'Évolution IRD CNRS Université de Montpellier CC 063 Place Eugène Bataillon F 34095 Montpellier cedex 05 France

Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics Department of Biology University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 32 B 3000 Leuven Belgium

Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics Department of Biology University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 32 B 3000 Leuven Belgium; Biology Department Royal Museum for Central Africa Leuvensesteenweg 13 B 3080 Tervuren Belgium

Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics Department of Biology University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 32 B 3000 Leuven Belgium; Biology Department Royal Museum for Central Africa Leuvensesteenweg 13 B 3080 Tervuren Belgium; Department of Botany and Zoology Faculty of Science Masaryk University Kotlářská 2 CZ 611 37 Brno Czech Republic

Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics Department of Biology University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 32 B 3000 Leuven Belgium; Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics Department of Biology Norwegian University of Science and Technology N 7491 Trondheim Norway

References provided by Crossref.org

All quiet on the western front? The evolutionary history of monogeneans (Dactylogyridae: Cichlidogyrus, Onchobdella) infecting a West and Central African tribe of cichlid fishes (Chromidotilapiini)

Temporally consistent species differences in parasite infection but no evidence for rapid parasite-mediated speciation in Lake Victoria cichlid fish

Six new dactylogyrid species (Platyhelminthes, Monogenea) from the gills of cichlids (Teleostei, Cichliformes) from the Lower Congo Basin

Seven new species of Cichlidogyrus Paperna, 1960 (Monogenea: Dactylogyridae) parasitizing the gills of Congolese cichlids from northern Lake Tanganyika

The first next-generation sequencing approach to the mitochondrial phylogeny of African monogenean parasites (Platyhelminthes: Gyrodactylidae and Dactylogyridae)

An annotated list and molecular data on larvae of gryporhynchid tapeworms (Cestoda: Cyclophyllidea) from freshwater fishes in Africa

Underexplored diversity of gill monogeneans in cichlids from Lake Tanganyika: eight new species of Cichlidogyrus Paperna, 1960 (Monogenea: Dactylogyridae) from the northern basin of the lake, with remarks on the vagina and the heel of the male copulatory organ

Reduced host-specificity in a parasite infecting non-littoral Lake Tanganyika cichlids evidenced by intraspecific morphological and genetic diversity