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Gnathia taurus is a fish parasite that was discovered on October 7, 1998 on a juvenile male fiddler ray (Rhynchobatus) in Heron Island, Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
The nameplate of the parasitic isopod listed the large violin ray (Rhynchobatus djiddensis) as the host, but the violin rays Rhynchobatus australiae Whitley, 1939 or Rhynchobatus palpebratus Compagno & Last, 2008 seem more likely to be the host, as both occur in the Great Barrier Reef.
Etymology: The specific name "taûros" comes from Latin and means "bull" and refers to the dorsally elongated lower jaw of the gnathiids, which is reminiscent of the horns of a bull.
Literature source:
Ota Y, Erasmus A, Grutter AS, Smit NJ (2024)
Two new species and new host and distribution records of Gnathia Leach, 1814 (Crustacea, Isopoda, Gnathiidae) from Western Australia and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
ZooKeys 1193: 125-144. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1193.116538
The nameplate of the parasitic isopod listed the large violin ray (Rhynchobatus djiddensis) as the host, but the violin rays Rhynchobatus australiae Whitley, 1939 or Rhynchobatus palpebratus Compagno & Last, 2008 seem more likely to be the host, as both occur in the Great Barrier Reef.
Etymology: The specific name "taûros" comes from Latin and means "bull" and refers to the dorsally elongated lower jaw of the gnathiids, which is reminiscent of the horns of a bull.
Literature source:
Ota Y, Erasmus A, Grutter AS, Smit NJ (2024)
Two new species and new host and distribution records of Gnathia Leach, 1814 (Crustacea, Isopoda, Gnathiidae) from Western Australia and the Great Barrier Reef, Australia.
ZooKeys 1193: 125-144. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.1193.116538
