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Infections by R enibacterium salmoninarum and N anophyetus salmincola C hapin are associated with reduced growth of juvenile C hinook salmon, O ncorhynchus tshawytscha ( W albaum), in the N ortheast P acific O cean
Author(s) -
Sandell T A,
Teel D J,
Fisher J,
Beckman B,
Jacobson K C
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
journal of fish diseases
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.819
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1365-2761
pISSN - 0140-7775
DOI - 10.1111/jfd.12243
Subject(s) - oncorhynchus , biology , chinook wind , juvenile , fishery , aquaculture , fish <actinopterygii> , zoology , ecology
We examined 1454 juvenile C hinook salmon, O ncorhynchus tshawytscha ( W albaum), captured in nearshore waters off the coasts of Washington and O regon (USA) from 1999 to 2004 for infection by R enibacterium salmoninarum , N anophyetus salmincola C hapin and skin metacercariae. The prevalence and intensities for each of these infections were established for both yearling and subyearling C hinook salmon. Two metrics of salmon growth, weight residuals and plasma levels of insulin‐like growth factor‐1, were determined for salmon infected with these pathogens/parasites, both individually and in combination, with uninfected fish used for comparison. Yearling C hinook salmon infected with R . salmoninarum had significantly reduced weight residuals. Chinook salmon infected with skin metacercariae alone did not have significantly reduced growth metrics. Dual infections were not associated with significantly more severe effects on the growth metrics than single infections; the number of triple infections was very low and precluded statistical comparison. Overall, these data suggest that infections by these organisms can be associated with reduced juvenile C hinook salmon growth. Because growth in the first year at sea has been linked to survival for some stocks of C hinook salmon, the infections may therefore play a role in regulating these populations in the Northeast P acific O cean.