| 12 October 2010
This snook with barnacles on both gill plates was reported to be living under a dock in 2007 by Capt Brook Wallace.Strange Snook we have seen
It's wierd what we do to snook, as well as what happens to snook naturally in the wild. Many of you find fish that have various abnormalities and some such as 'Barney,' in the adjacent photo, have been reported on previously.
Did you know that Florida has a Fish and Wildlife Health department that looks into these things? The Fish Kill Hotline (800 636 0511) will pay and arrange for shipping if you do catch a diseased or abnormal fish that you would like to submit to FWH (please bag it and ice it asap).
The rest of this article contains some graphic photos so do not read more if you are squeamish.
Theresa Cody, FWC scientist, provided the following information about snook submissions to Fish and Wildlife Health: Fish and Wildlife Health receives abnormal fish from our Fisheries Independent Monitoring group during regular sampling and from the public. We perform necropsies and maintain all of the data in our necropsy database.
mechanical injuries to fish from discarded line and litter, and swallowed hooks, are preventableOver the last five years, we have had 46 snook submissions from various areas in FL. During this time, the abnormalities have been categorized as bloody (n=11), erosion to the muscle/skin (n=7), fin rot (n=3), parasitized (n=2), with skeletal abnormalities (n=5), with tumors (n=4), or with ulcers/lesions (n=15). I would say that 46 snook over five years is a low number and that these abnormalities can result for many reasons.
It is well documented in the scientific literature that fish can succumb to environmental stress and become susceptible to disease. Pollution can be a factor, but it is not necessarily the reason for developmental abnormalities or disease.
Natural events such as sudden changes in water temperature, freshwater influx into an estuarine system, spawning stress, predation (can result in mechanical damage), or exposure to harmful algae, to name a few, can result in stress to the fish from which they may or may not be able to recover. Disease or fish kills can ensue.
Snook missing it's left gill cover, apparently a congenital defect, which has been observed before. Similar abnormalities such as a snook without eyes, of good size and quite healthy, have also been seen. Disease epidemics have been documented and can occur in natural systems just as they do in the human population.
Mechanical damage may be the result of fishing activity, but often we cannot say for sure. As always, it is important to practice responsible fishing so that fish may be released if they are not being kept. Hooks can damage internal organs which can lead to other problems. Using circle hooks virtually eliminates the risk of gut hooking a fish.
Our group (at Fish and Wildlife Health), has many diagnostic capabilities and while we cannot always determine the causal factors, many times we can use these tools such as necropsy (autopsy on an animal), microbiology, histopathology, and microscopy to determine what has caused the abnormality. .
A swallowed hook eventually weakens and may kill the fish. Using Circle Hooks prevents gut-hooking and makes it easier to catch and release all kinds of fish.
We are interested in receiving such specimens for study and documentation
Fresh specimens are the most useful because if we determine that histological analysis is necessary, the tissues will be in the best shape. Once an animal dies, decomposition begins immediately and tissues begin to break down and become infiltrated with bacteria.
Frozen specimens are also less useful as microbiology and histological analysis may not be possible. If you do catch a diseased or abnormal fish that you would like to submit to FWH, please bag the animal and place it on ice.
Call the Fish Kill Hotline (FKH) at (800) 636-0511 and we will arrange and pay for shipping. If someone can provide it, I would be interested in the collection location of these animals for documentation in our FKH database
