06-12-2006, 09:13 PM
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]1. What is Largemouth Bass Virus?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]It is one of more than 100 naturally occurring viruses that affect fish but not warm-blooded animals. Origin is unknown, but it is related to a virus found in frogs and other amphibians and nearly identical to a virus isolated in fish imported to the U.S. for the aquarium trade. Although the virus is carried by other fish species, to date, it has produced disease only in largemouth bass. Scientists do not know how the virus is transmitted or how it is activated into disease. In addition, they know of no cure or preventative, as is commonly the case with viruses.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]LMBV first gained attention in 1995, when it was implicated in a fish kill on Santee Cooper Reservoir in South Carolina. Since then, the virus has been found in lakes and impoundments from Texas east to the Chesapeake Bay area and south into Florida.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]During 2000, LMBV was confirmed as the source of a kill in Lake George on the Indiana-Michigan border. The following year, minor kills were attributable to LMBV in the same general area, with the virus being found in two lakes in Michigan, three in Indiana, and two on the border. Illinois also reported finding the virus in fish from four lakes and in hatchery stock.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Often, LMBV has been found in bass that show no signs of disease, which suggests that some fish might be infected but not ever become ill.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Some kills, however, have been linked to LMBV. Since all those die-offs occurred from June through September, warmwater temperatures might be a factor, particularly in Southern fisheries, where surface temperatures can remain in the 90s for months at a time. No other common variables seem to exist among lakes where kills occurred. Some lakes, for example, contain aquatic vegetation and others do not, suggesting that herbicide management of aquatic plants did not trigger the disease to turn fatal.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Some scientists believe that "stressed" bass might be the most likely to die of the disease. Along with hot weather, stress factors might include poor water quality caused by pollution.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Thus far, LMBV-related kills have been minor in comparison to kills prompted by other causes, such as pollution. These incidents have received considerable attention, however, because they involve the nation's most popular game fish.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]No evidence exists that LMBV has caused a long-term problem on any fishery or will have a long-term impact. But scientists are investigating how the virus might affect growth rates of bass, particularly younger fish.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]2. What are the signs of Largemouth Bass Virus?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Most bass infected with LMBV will appear completely normal. In those cases where the virus has triggered disease, however, dying fish will be near the surface and have trouble swimming and remaining upright. That's because LMBV appears to attack the swim[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]bladder, causing bass to lose their balance. Diseased fish might also appear bloated.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]The occurrence of lesions or black spots is not necessarily a symptom of LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Adult bass of two pounds and more seem to be the most susceptible to disease.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]3. Is Largemouth Bass Virus a new disease?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]No one knows. Because LMBV has been confirmed in so many places at nearly the same time, some scientists suspect the virus has been around for a while. Others suggest that "genetic sequencing information" indicates that it may be relatively new. Recent
evidence suggests that the virus was present during 1991 in Florida's Lake Weir.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]4. Where has Largemouth Bass Virus been found?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Since 1995, LMBV has been found in 17 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Other states have monitored for the virus, but did not find it. Others plan to do so in 2002. Between March and November 2000, researchers examined 3,476 largemouth bass and related sunfish species in nine southeastern states, according to the federal Warm Springs Fish Health Center. Of those, 464, or 13 percent, tested positive for LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Fish kills attributable to LMBV have been confirmed in more than two dozen locations. During 2001, however, mortalities reported were the lowest in several years. Minor kills occurred in Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, and Michigan.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Additionally, the presence of the virus itself seemed to decline in Southern waters. In Texas, for example, only 45 of 899 adult-size largemouth bass sampled in LMBV-positive reservoirs were infected. Previously, infection rates in some fisheries were more than 50 percent of sampled bass.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]5. What are the impacts to bass populations?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Scientists do not know enough yet about the virus to determine if it will have long-lasting effects on bass populations. Indications are, however, that it will not harm fisheries long-term. Surveys on lakes following a kill suggest that fish populations remain within the normal range of sampling variability.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]6. What are the impacts to fishing?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Following some kills, anglers have reported catching fewer bass, especially bigger fish. But indications are that an infected fishery will recover within a year or two.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]More largemouth bass are killed annually by other known diseases or poor environmental conditions than by LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]7. Are other fish and animals affected by Largemouth Bass Virus?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]LMBV is a virus of the type that affects only cold-blooded animals. Researchers have found it in other centrarchids, but, thus far, it has proved to be a fatal disease only for largemouth bass. Other members of the sunfish family found infected with the virus include smallmouth bass, spotted bass, Suwanee bass, bluegill, redbreast sunfish, white crappie, and black crappie.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Amphibians, reptiles, and other fish species could be carriers of LMBV. Scientists have found LMBV to be 98 percent identical to a virus found in guppies and "doctor fish," a freshwater aquarium species imported from Southeast Asia. This suggests that LMBV could have originated with importation of an exotic species.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]8. Are infected fish safe to handle and eat?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Yes. LMBV is not known to infect any warm-blooded animals, including humans. But common sense should prevail at all times: Thoroughly cook fish that you intend to eat. Also, fish that are dead or dying should not be used for human food, regardless of the cause of the illness.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]9. What can and is being done.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]As with many fish viruses, little is known about LMBV. But because of the popularity of largemouth bass, state and federal agencies, universities, and private-interest groups are working hard to learn more about the virus and its impact on the resource. Universities involved with LMBV include Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Auburn, California-Davis, University of Illinois, Louisiana State, Mississippi, Mississippi State, and Texas A&M. During 2001, the federal Sport Fish Restoration Program, also known as
Wallop-Breaux, provided more than $400,000 for LMBV research.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]10. What the experts think.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Because so little is known about LMBV, scientists have few conclusions to offer regarding the virus. They do suggest, though, that LMBV probably will become an enduring element in ecosystems and a component in natural selection. In other words, it could serve as a population control. On the positive side, scientists believe that LMBV does not appear to have the potential to cause anything more than minor and sporadic fish kills.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]11. What can anglers do?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Anglers can help minimize the spread of LMBV virus and its activation into a lethal disease by doing the following:[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Clean boats, trailers, and other equipment thoroughly between fishing trips to keep from transporting LMBV--- as well as other undesirable pathogens and organisms--- from one water body to another. Recent research has determined that the virus can live
for several hours in water, confirming the importance of this practice.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Never move fish or fish parts from one body of water to another. And do not release live bait into a fishery.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Handle bass as gently a possible if you intend to release them.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Stage tournaments during cooler weather, so fish caught will not be so stressed.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Report dead or dying fish to state wildlife agencies.[/size][/green][/font]
[signature]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]It is one of more than 100 naturally occurring viruses that affect fish but not warm-blooded animals. Origin is unknown, but it is related to a virus found in frogs and other amphibians and nearly identical to a virus isolated in fish imported to the U.S. for the aquarium trade. Although the virus is carried by other fish species, to date, it has produced disease only in largemouth bass. Scientists do not know how the virus is transmitted or how it is activated into disease. In addition, they know of no cure or preventative, as is commonly the case with viruses.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]LMBV first gained attention in 1995, when it was implicated in a fish kill on Santee Cooper Reservoir in South Carolina. Since then, the virus has been found in lakes and impoundments from Texas east to the Chesapeake Bay area and south into Florida.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]During 2000, LMBV was confirmed as the source of a kill in Lake George on the Indiana-Michigan border. The following year, minor kills were attributable to LMBV in the same general area, with the virus being found in two lakes in Michigan, three in Indiana, and two on the border. Illinois also reported finding the virus in fish from four lakes and in hatchery stock.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Often, LMBV has been found in bass that show no signs of disease, which suggests that some fish might be infected but not ever become ill.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Some kills, however, have been linked to LMBV. Since all those die-offs occurred from June through September, warmwater temperatures might be a factor, particularly in Southern fisheries, where surface temperatures can remain in the 90s for months at a time. No other common variables seem to exist among lakes where kills occurred. Some lakes, for example, contain aquatic vegetation and others do not, suggesting that herbicide management of aquatic plants did not trigger the disease to turn fatal.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Some scientists believe that "stressed" bass might be the most likely to die of the disease. Along with hot weather, stress factors might include poor water quality caused by pollution.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Thus far, LMBV-related kills have been minor in comparison to kills prompted by other causes, such as pollution. These incidents have received considerable attention, however, because they involve the nation's most popular game fish.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]No evidence exists that LMBV has caused a long-term problem on any fishery or will have a long-term impact. But scientists are investigating how the virus might affect growth rates of bass, particularly younger fish.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]2. What are the signs of Largemouth Bass Virus?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Most bass infected with LMBV will appear completely normal. In those cases where the virus has triggered disease, however, dying fish will be near the surface and have trouble swimming and remaining upright. That's because LMBV appears to attack the swim[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]bladder, causing bass to lose their balance. Diseased fish might also appear bloated.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]The occurrence of lesions or black spots is not necessarily a symptom of LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Adult bass of two pounds and more seem to be the most susceptible to disease.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]3. Is Largemouth Bass Virus a new disease?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]No one knows. Because LMBV has been confirmed in so many places at nearly the same time, some scientists suspect the virus has been around for a while. Others suggest that "genetic sequencing information" indicates that it may be relatively new. Recent
evidence suggests that the virus was present during 1991 in Florida's Lake Weir.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]4. Where has Largemouth Bass Virus been found?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Since 1995, LMBV has been found in 17 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. Other states have monitored for the virus, but did not find it. Others plan to do so in 2002. Between March and November 2000, researchers examined 3,476 largemouth bass and related sunfish species in nine southeastern states, according to the federal Warm Springs Fish Health Center. Of those, 464, or 13 percent, tested positive for LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Fish kills attributable to LMBV have been confirmed in more than two dozen locations. During 2001, however, mortalities reported were the lowest in several years. Minor kills occurred in Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Louisiana, and Michigan.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Additionally, the presence of the virus itself seemed to decline in Southern waters. In Texas, for example, only 45 of 899 adult-size largemouth bass sampled in LMBV-positive reservoirs were infected. Previously, infection rates in some fisheries were more than 50 percent of sampled bass.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]5. What are the impacts to bass populations?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Scientists do not know enough yet about the virus to determine if it will have long-lasting effects on bass populations. Indications are, however, that it will not harm fisheries long-term. Surveys on lakes following a kill suggest that fish populations remain within the normal range of sampling variability.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]6. What are the impacts to fishing?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Following some kills, anglers have reported catching fewer bass, especially bigger fish. But indications are that an infected fishery will recover within a year or two.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]More largemouth bass are killed annually by other known diseases or poor environmental conditions than by LMBV.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]7. Are other fish and animals affected by Largemouth Bass Virus?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]LMBV is a virus of the type that affects only cold-blooded animals. Researchers have found it in other centrarchids, but, thus far, it has proved to be a fatal disease only for largemouth bass. Other members of the sunfish family found infected with the virus include smallmouth bass, spotted bass, Suwanee bass, bluegill, redbreast sunfish, white crappie, and black crappie.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Amphibians, reptiles, and other fish species could be carriers of LMBV. Scientists have found LMBV to be 98 percent identical to a virus found in guppies and "doctor fish," a freshwater aquarium species imported from Southeast Asia. This suggests that LMBV could have originated with importation of an exotic species.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]8. Are infected fish safe to handle and eat?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Yes. LMBV is not known to infect any warm-blooded animals, including humans. But common sense should prevail at all times: Thoroughly cook fish that you intend to eat. Also, fish that are dead or dying should not be used for human food, regardless of the cause of the illness.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]9. What can and is being done.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]As with many fish viruses, little is known about LMBV. But because of the popularity of largemouth bass, state and federal agencies, universities, and private-interest groups are working hard to learn more about the virus and its impact on the resource. Universities involved with LMBV include Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Auburn, California-Davis, University of Illinois, Louisiana State, Mississippi, Mississippi State, and Texas A&M. During 2001, the federal Sport Fish Restoration Program, also known as
Wallop-Breaux, provided more than $400,000 for LMBV research.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]10. What the experts think.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Because so little is known about LMBV, scientists have few conclusions to offer regarding the virus. They do suggest, though, that LMBV probably will become an enduring element in ecosystems and a component in natural selection. In other words, it could serve as a population control. On the positive side, scientists believe that LMBV does not appear to have the potential to cause anything more than minor and sporadic fish kills.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]11. What can anglers do?[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]Anglers can help minimize the spread of LMBV virus and its activation into a lethal disease by doing the following:[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Clean boats, trailers, and other equipment thoroughly between fishing trips to keep from transporting LMBV--- as well as other undesirable pathogens and organisms--- from one water body to another. Recent research has determined that the virus can live
for several hours in water, confirming the importance of this practice.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Never move fish or fish parts from one body of water to another. And do not release live bait into a fishery.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Handle bass as gently a possible if you intend to release them.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Stage tournaments during cooler weather, so fish caught will not be so stressed.[/size][/green][/font]
[font "Poor Richard"][green][size 3]--- Report dead or dying fish to state wildlife agencies.[/size][/green][/font]
[signature]
