Fish Health and Disease

Factors limiting survival of juvenile endangered suckers.

Impaired water quality conditions in Upper Klamath Lake have been implicated in reduced survival of fishes and are a concern for recovery efforts.

Species Studied - Shortnose Sucker ( Chasmistes brevirostris)

Species Studied - Lost River Sucker ( Deltistes luxatus)

Fish Parasite - Ichthyophonus hoferi

Fish Virus - Erythrocytic Necrosis Virus (ENV)

Fish Virus - Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia Virus (VHSV)

Species Studied - Steelhead Trout ( Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Species Studied - Pacific Herring ( Clupea pallasii)

Species Studied - Pacific Halibut ( Hippoglossus stenolepis)

The WFRC has partnered separately with both the Skagit River System Tribal Cooperative and the Nisqually Tribe to research the use of otoliths (calcium carbonate deposits beneath the brain used in hearing and balance that grow in proportion to the overall growth of the fish) as a tool in examination of Puget Sound Fall Chinook salmon life history.

At the request of the State of Washington, the Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission (NWIFC) and the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the Western Fisheries Research Center has been providing technical advice and conducting research regarding the emergence of IHNV in the watersheds of coastal Washington State.