A parasite survey of farmed Southern bluefin tuna, Thunnus maccoyii (Castelnau)

J Fish Dis. 2005 May;28(5):279-84. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2761.2005.00629.x.

Abstract

Farmed Southern bluefin tuna (SBT) were examined for parasites. Samples of harvest fish, mortalities and some fish showing clinical signs of disease were investigated. Targeted screening was conducted for a scuticociliate, Uronema nigricans, the myxosporean Kudoa sp. and a sanguinicolid digenean, Cardicola forsteri. General parasitological investigation revealed a diverse parasite community of didymozoid digeneans, two species of copepods, a polyopisthocotylean monogenean and larval cestodes. Targeted screening for U. nigricans exposed a low prevalence, most probably due to a lack of sensitivity in the test method. Few of the parasites examined pose a risk to the health of farmed SBT.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Aquaculture
  • Fish Diseases / epidemiology*
  • Fish Diseases / parasitology*
  • Gastrointestinal Tract / parasitology
  • Gills / parasitology
  • Histological Techniques
  • Parasitic Diseases, Animal / epidemiology*
  • Prevalence
  • South Australia / epidemiology
  • Tuna*