First Report of a Sea Louse, Lepeophtheirus salmonis, Infestation on Juvenile Pink Salmon, Oncorhynchus gorbuscha, in Nearshore Habitat

High infestation rates of the Sea Louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) have been reported on juvenile salmonids in Europe since 1989; however, this species has not been reported on juvenile Pacific salmonids until now. Magnitude of Sea Lice infestation was examined in 2001 on juvenile Pink Salmon (Oncorh...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Canadian Field-Naturalist
Main Authors: Morton, Alexandra B., Williams, Rob
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club 2003
Subjects:
Pink Salmon
Oncorhynchus gorbuscha
Sea Lice
Lepeophtheirus salmonis
British Columbia
aquaculture
salmon farm
Pacific
Pink salmon
Online Access:https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/834
https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v117i4.834
Description
Summary:High infestation rates of the Sea Louse (Lepeophtheirus salmonis) have been reported on juvenile salmonids in Europe since 1989; however, this species has not been reported on juvenile Pacific salmonids until now. Magnitude of Sea Lice infestation was examined in 2001 on juvenile Pink Salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) migrating through a British Columbia archipelago. On average, the 751 juvenile Pink Salmon sampled weighed 2.25 g (± 0.039 SE), were infected with 11.3 (± 0.41 SE) Sea Lice per fish and 6.1 (± 0.24SE) Sea Lice per gram host weight. Fully 75.0% of fish were infected at loads equivalent to or higher than the lethal limit reported for much larger Sea Trout (Salmo trutta) post-smolts. Abundance (Kruskal-Wallis statistic = 100.95, p<0.0001) and intensity (KW= 70.05, p<0.0001) of lice, and mean number of lice/g host weight (K-W= 112.23, p<0.0001) were significantly higher in juvenile Pink Salmon in close proximity to salmon farms, than in Pink Salmon distant from salmon farms.

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