The Lower Congo Basin is characterized by a mangrove-lined estuary at its mouth and, further upstream, by many hydrogeographical barriers such as rapids and narrow gorges. Five localities in the mangroves and four from (upstream) left bank tributaries or pools were sampled. On the gills of Coptodon tholloni, Coptodon rendalli, Hemichromis elongatus, Hemichromis stellifer and Tylochromis praecox, 17 species of parasites (Dactylogyridae & Gyrodactylidae, Monogenea) were found, eight of which are new to science. Six of these are herein described: Cichlidogyrus bixlerzavalai n. sp. and Cichlidogyrus omari n. sp. from T. praecox, Cichlidogyrus calycinus n. sp. and Cichlidogyrus polyenso n. sp. from H. elongatus, Cichlidogyrus kmentovae n. sp. from H. stellifer and Onchobdella ximenae n. sp. from both species of Hemichromis. On Cichlidogyrus reversati a ridge on the accessory piece was discovered that connects to the basal bulb of the penis. We report a putative spillback effect of the native parasites Cichlidogyrus berradae, Cichlidogyrus cubitus and Cichlidogyrus flexicolpos from C. tholloni to the introduced C. rendalli. From our results, we note that the parasite fauna of Lower Congo has a higher affinity with the fauna of West African and nearby freshwater ecoregions than it has with fauna of other regions of the Congo Basin and Central Africa.

Le cours du Bas Congo est caractérisé par un estuaire bordé de mangroves et, plus en amont, par de nombreuses barrières hydro-géographiques formées de rapides ou de gorges étroites. Nous avons échantillonné dans cinq localités au niveau des mangroves et dans quatre autres en amont sur la rive gauche du fleuve, dans des affluents ou des étangs. Nous avons trouvé, sur les branchies de Coptodon tholloni, Coptodon rendalli, Hemichromis elongatus, Hemichromis stellifer et Tylochromis praecox, 17 espèces de parasites (Dactylogyridae et Gyrodactylidae, Monogenea), dont huit sont nouvelles pour la science. Six d’entre elles sont décrites ici : Cichlidogyrus bixlerzavalai n. sp. et Cichlidogyrus omari n. sp. sur T. praecox, Cichlidogyrus calycinus n. sp. et Cichlidogyrus polyenso n. sp. sur H. elongatus, Cichlidogyrus kmentovae n. sp. sur H. stellifer et Onchobdella ximenae n. sp. sur les deux espèces d’Hemichromis. Nous décrivons, chez Cichlidogyrus reversati, une arête sur la pièce accessoire qui la connecte avec l’ampoule basale basal du pénis. Nous notons un probable transfert latéral des espèces autochtones Cichlidogyrus berradae, Cichlidogyrus cubitus et Cichlidogyrus flexicolpos de C. tholloni vers l’espèce introduite C. rendalli. Nos résultats montrent que la faune parasitaire du Bas Congo présente plus d’affinités avec les faunes d’Afrique de l’Ouest ou des écorégions d’eau douce voisines, qu’avec celles des autres parties du bassin du Congo ou de l’Afrique Centrale.

Centre de Recherche en Hydrobiologie Uvira B P 73 Democratic Republic of the Congo

Institut Supérieur Pédagogique Mbanza Ngungu B P 127 Democratic Republic of the Congo

ISEM Univ de Montpellier CNRS IRD Montpellier France

Research Group Zoology Biodiversity and Toxicology Centre for Environmental Sciences Hasselt University Agoralaan gebouw D 3590 Diepenbeek Belgium

Research Group Zoology Biodiversity and Toxicology Centre for Environmental Sciences Hasselt University Agoralaan gebouw D 3590 Diepenbeek Belgium Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 42 3000 Leuven Belgium Department of Botany and Zoology Faculty of Science Masaryk University Kamenice 735 5 625 00 Brno Czech Republic Zoology Unit Finnish Museum of Natural History University of Helsinki Pohjoinen Rautatiekatu 13 00100 Helsinki Finland

Research Group Zoology Biodiversity and Toxicology Centre for Environmental Sciences Hasselt University Agoralaan gebouw D 3590 Diepenbeek Belgium Royal Museum for Central Africa Leuvensesteenweg 13 3080 Tervuren Belgium

Royal Museum for Central Africa Leuvensesteenweg 13 3080 Tervuren Belgium Laboratory of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Genomics University of Leuven Charles Deberiotstraat 42 3000 Leuven Belgium

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