ge60355
07-24-2007, 12:55 PM
Fish virus spreads to rainbow trout
Posted on: Tuesday, July 24, 2007
ALBANY (AP) — A deadly fish virus spreading through upstate New York has been detected in three new locations and for the first time has been found in rainbow trout, one of the state’s top game fish, state scientists said Monday.
Viral hemorrhagic septicemia was found in fish taken from the Little Salmon River in Oswego County and the Seneca-Cayuga Canal, as well as an isolated farm pond in Niagara County, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said.
Fish infected with VHS have been previously documented from Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, the St. Lawrence River, Conesus Lake and Skaneateles Lake.
‘‘It’s perplexing because we can only guesstimate at this point as to where it’s going to pop up next,’’ said Doug Stang, chief of the New York DEC’s Bureau of Fisheries, which is monitoring 40 bodies of water to track the spread of VHS.
The virus, which causes internal bleeding in fish but poses no threat to humans, was discovered in the United States in 1988 in Coho and Chinook salmon in the Pacific Northwest. VHS made its first known appearance in the Great Lakes in 2005, killing freshwater drum and muskellunge.
In New York, VHS has been identified in nearly two dozen species since first appearing last year, including muskellunge, the state’s No. 2 sport fish.
In May, the DEC finalized regulations to help prevent the spread of VHS and other diseases into New York’s inland waters. The regulations restrict the movement of bait fish and the stocking of fish into New York’s waters.
Despite the measures, though, VHS continues to spread. There is no known cure for VHS, which has caused fish kills in New York ranging from a few to thousands of fish.
‘‘We haven’t seen it east of Syracuse yet, and that’s good. We are hoping that the steps we are taking will keep it from spreading,’’ Stang said.
In the Little Salmon River, which empties into Lake Ontario, a single rainbow trout tested positive for VHS, the first detection of the virus in rainbow trout found in New York.
The canal is separated from Lake Ontario by a series of locks along the Oswego and Erie canals.
VHS-positive sunfish were collected during a fish kill in the Seneca-Cayuga Canal, which is separated from Lake Ontario by a series of locks and dams.
Sunfish and koi were found to be VHS positive at a 1-acre farm pond in Ransomville. The property owner reported that all the fish in the pond died. However, Stang noted that the owner had transferred fish from nearby Twelve Mile Creek during the summer of 2006 as part of a fish rescue operation.
The transferred fish were the likely cause of VHS being introduced to the pond’s fish population.
‘‘We still haven’t identified the transport mechanism, but we know transferring fish from one waterway to another is a sure way to spread it,’’ Stang said.
On the Net:
www.dos.state.ny.us/info/register/ 2007/jun6/pdfs/rules.pdf
www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/ 33072.html
Posted on: Tuesday, July 24, 2007
ALBANY (AP) — A deadly fish virus spreading through upstate New York has been detected in three new locations and for the first time has been found in rainbow trout, one of the state’s top game fish, state scientists said Monday.
Viral hemorrhagic septicemia was found in fish taken from the Little Salmon River in Oswego County and the Seneca-Cayuga Canal, as well as an isolated farm pond in Niagara County, the state Department of Environmental Conservation said.
Fish infected with VHS have been previously documented from Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, the St. Lawrence River, Conesus Lake and Skaneateles Lake.
‘‘It’s perplexing because we can only guesstimate at this point as to where it’s going to pop up next,’’ said Doug Stang, chief of the New York DEC’s Bureau of Fisheries, which is monitoring 40 bodies of water to track the spread of VHS.
The virus, which causes internal bleeding in fish but poses no threat to humans, was discovered in the United States in 1988 in Coho and Chinook salmon in the Pacific Northwest. VHS made its first known appearance in the Great Lakes in 2005, killing freshwater drum and muskellunge.
In New York, VHS has been identified in nearly two dozen species since first appearing last year, including muskellunge, the state’s No. 2 sport fish.
In May, the DEC finalized regulations to help prevent the spread of VHS and other diseases into New York’s inland waters. The regulations restrict the movement of bait fish and the stocking of fish into New York’s waters.
Despite the measures, though, VHS continues to spread. There is no known cure for VHS, which has caused fish kills in New York ranging from a few to thousands of fish.
‘‘We haven’t seen it east of Syracuse yet, and that’s good. We are hoping that the steps we are taking will keep it from spreading,’’ Stang said.
In the Little Salmon River, which empties into Lake Ontario, a single rainbow trout tested positive for VHS, the first detection of the virus in rainbow trout found in New York.
The canal is separated from Lake Ontario by a series of locks along the Oswego and Erie canals.
VHS-positive sunfish were collected during a fish kill in the Seneca-Cayuga Canal, which is separated from Lake Ontario by a series of locks and dams.
Sunfish and koi were found to be VHS positive at a 1-acre farm pond in Ransomville. The property owner reported that all the fish in the pond died. However, Stang noted that the owner had transferred fish from nearby Twelve Mile Creek during the summer of 2006 as part of a fish rescue operation.
The transferred fish were the likely cause of VHS being introduced to the pond’s fish population.
‘‘We still haven’t identified the transport mechanism, but we know transferring fish from one waterway to another is a sure way to spread it,’’ Stang said.
On the Net:
www.dos.state.ny.us/info/register/ 2007/jun6/pdfs/rules.pdf
www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/ 33072.html