Icky disease afflicting Alaskan salmon

[marmar]

from Grist:



Ich Infect Dich
Icky disease afflicting Alaskan salmon
Posted at 3:54 PM on 16 Jun 2008

Alaska's prized wild salmon are suffering from a disease that scientists suspect of being boosted by -- you guessed it -- global warming. The emergence of Ichthyophonus as a threat to king salmon has coincided with a steady warming of Yukon River water over the past few decades, which scientists say has welcomed cold-averse parasites northward. "Climate change isn't going to increase infectious diseases but change the disease landscape," says federal marine ecologist Kevin D. Lafferty. "And some of these surprises are not going to be pretty." Literally: Fish infected with "ich" become covered in white, pimply spots, smell funky, and produce mealy, oily flesh. One independent researcher estimates that perhaps 20 percent of king salmon are dying of ich before reaching spawning grounds. If so, fisheries would do well to cut back commercial catches by an equal amount to maintain a healthy population; so far, Alaska's Fish and Game Department has largely chosen to ignore the problem.

source: Los Angeles Times


http://www.grist.org/news/2008/06/16/salmon/

[Ian David]

1. Hopefully it will make Ben Stein sick first. n/t

[GodlessBiker]

2. Harold Icky?

[bluedawg12]

3. Yup, as bodies of water warm bacteria will emerge

in addition to other changes in water chemistry and algae affecting aquatic life.

The global climate chnage deniers have a lot to answer for.

This seems like double talk:
"Climate change isn't going to increase infectious diseases but change the disease landscape," says federal marine ecologist Kevin D. Lafferty."

According to the CDC ( read last year-don't have link presently) infectious diseases and parasites WILL affect land and water based life--including homo sapiens stupidis.