Haematozoans from deep water fishes trawled off the Cape Verde Islands and over the Porcupine Seabight, with a revision of species within the genus Desseria (Adeleorina: Haemogregarinidae).

Archived blood smears from 32 of 113 fishes in 18 families and 12 orders, trawled from deep North Atlantic waters off the Cape Verde Islands in 1999 and over the Porcupine Seabight in 2001 were found to harbour haematozoans. These included four species of haemogregarines (Adeleorina, Haemogregarinidae) and a species of trypanosome (Trypanosomatina, Trypanosomatidae) located in Porcupine Seabight fishes. Also present were Haemohormidium-like structures of uncertain status found in samples from this location and from the Cape Verde Islands. Although material was limited, two of the haemogregarines were provisionally named Desseria harriottae sp. n. from Harriotta raleighana Goode et Bean (Chimaeriformes, Rhinochimaeridae), and Haemogregarina bathysauri sp. n. from Bathysaurus ferox Günther (Aulopiformes, Bathysauridae). The two remaining haemogregarines were identified as Desseria marshalllairdi (Khan, Threlfall et Whitty, 1992) from Halosauropsis macrochir (Günther) (Notacanthiformes, Halosauridae), and Haemogregarina michaeljohnstoni (Davies et Merrett, 2000) from Cataetyx laticeps Koefoed (Ophidiformes, Bythitidae). The name H. michaeljohnstoni was proposed to replace Haemogregarinajohnstoni Davies et Merrett, 2000 from C. laticeps and to avoid confusion with Hepatozoon johnstoni (Mackerras, 1961) Smith, 1996 from varanid lizards, originally named Haemogregarina johnstoni Mackerras, 1961. The trypanosome formed a mixed parasitaemia with D. harriottae in H. raleighana and was provisionally named Trypanosoma harriottae sp. n. No blood parasites had been described previously from cartilaginous fishes of the Holocephali, making the finds in H. raleighana unique. Haemohormidium-like structures were located in erythrocytes in one fish, Coryphaenoides armatus (Hector), among the Cape Verde Islands samples and in 12 species of fishes from the Porcupine Seabight; all these hosts were bony fishes. Finally, the haemogregarine species listed in the genus Desseria Siddall, 1995 were reassessed. Of the original list of 41 species, 30 were retained and 5 species added, including D. harriottae, so that the genus now contains 35 species.