Echinorhynchus lageniformis

Echinorhynchus lageniformis is an acanthocephalan parasite first described in 1938 from the gut of the starry flounder (Platichthys stellatus). It primarily infects marine flatfish along the Pacific coast of North America. Its life cycle, discovered in 1971, requires an amphipod crustacean (Corophium spinicorne) as an intermediate host.

Distribution: Pacific coast of North America

Hosts: Marine flatfish (sole, flounder) and amphipod crustaceans

Detection Methods: Gross pathology / gross clinical signs

Target Tissue: Gut