Lake Cumberland parasites from KDFW

[peter]

Fisheries biologists at Lake Cumberland found a parasitic copepod is the cause of unusual sores on the tongue and mouth of striped bass in the lake.

"When we sampled the lake's striped bass fishery in mid-December, every fish we handled was infested," said John Williams, southeastern district fishery biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.

The copepod, genus Achtheres, has been found in recent years in mountain lakes in Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

"The parasites infest the fish's oral cavity and do not affect the fish's flesh. The fish are okay to eat," said Williams.

The external parasites are visible to the naked eye. Young copepods attach to the fish's gill filaments and migrate to its mouth as adults to reproduce. The parasites can impact the gills and hamper respiration in larger fish.

It's uncertain at this time if the parasite is native to the region or has somehow been introduced. Angler transfer of fish through livewells and the introductions of infected fish may have enabled the parasite to spread so quickly from lake to lake in the region.

Williams said the parasites have also been found on a small percentage of largemouth bass in three reservoirs in south central Kentucky: Wood Creek Lake, Laurel River Lake and Cedar Creek Lake.

"Fish get a variety of parasites. They are an annoyance," said Williams. "They would not be the primary cause of a die-off of stripers in Lake Cumberland."

Another mystery is why the parasite spread so rapidly through the population. "We suspect the lowering of body condition has made striped bass more susceptible to the parasites," said Williams.

Lake Cumberland, a 50,250-acre major reservoir near Jamestown, Ky., is the state's premier striped bass fishery and has supported a quality population of stripers since the 1980s.
In 2007, Lake Cumberland was drawn down about 40 feet below summer pool to make repairs to Wolf Creek Dam. Since that time, the body condition of striped bass in the lake has been impacted due to the loss of cool water habitat in the fall.

"Growth rates have declined considerably. In the past, it took striped bass in Lake Cumberland three years to reach the keeper size of 24 inches. Now, we have a majority of fish stockpiling below that length," said Williams. "We believe all this is due to conditions that are stressing fish. They're not eating and are not growing as fast."

However, Williams said the stomachs of striped bass recently sampled were full. "In December, the stripers were up in the creeks gorging on small shad. By all indications, there was a good shad spawn last spring," he said.

An ecological study funded by Virginia's Department of Game and Inland Fisheries found that a number of lakes in the region with populations of striped bass have been affected as early as 2000.

The parasites were first identified on striped bass in the Potomac River in 1915. A study in the 1950s in Louisiana found the parasite on black bass, bullheads and other sport fish species.
Recent research suggests that two species may exist in lakes in the southeastern United States, but the impact of infestations is poorly understood. Researchers found that the abundance of the parasites is seasonal and cyclic and often reflects the overall condition of the host.

Author Art Lander Jr. has been writing about the outdoors since the 1970s. He is a staff writer for Kentucky Afield Magazine.

[pct]

This makes me feel a little better about coming down in May for the night bite.. When did they start seeing these? I do not remember seeing them in the stripers we caught last May 2011.

[peter]

First I heard was from Stripernut October or November.

I wonder what exactly the following excerpt from the above article means--implications and such.

"Now, we have a majority of fish stockpiling below that length," (24")

[JUSTINHALL]

The first I saw them was in September, a few of the fish had them in their mouth but not all. By late November early December majority, if not all that I caught had them in the mouth, so from what I caught seemed to have spread pretty fast.

[stripernut]

"BANG" ! just pulled the trigger on the fillet knife !
the fact that these statements are based on cumberland and the actual conditions that exist here i feel alot better about the future of this fishery (trying to be positive here ).
i am still a little leery of actually eating one yet....im gonna make sure forum member "gizzard shad" doesnt grow antlers or something from eating affected fish lol
if the water is cool i will keep every drum i catch for the table, i have even eaten common carp, and even tried to smoke a skipjack (that was pretty rough) so im not picky, i just cant seem to get over the image of "maggots" in the mouth of a fish im about to eat.
p.s. all 5 stripes we caught in the river a couple of days ago had the parasite as well, but as everyone knows there aint nothin skinny or poor on the stripes below the dam .
looking forward to this stuff being a bad memory

[Mean Morone]

So are they saying that these things run in cycles and that they will go away eventually?

[jcb]

"BANG" ! just pulled the trigger on the fillet knife !
y

If the parasites get you, can I have your fillet knife?

[stripernut]

If the parasites get you, can I have your fillet knife?

hahaha....good one

[HURRICANEBOB]

Real nice...how long did KDFWR know this and not tell us? Is their any part of "public service" that they do understand? Okay, I got it..... "we're scared we'll impact the local economy". Bull-Bluegill Crap! KDFWR....the coffee is ready. Try some, then get back to doing the public information thing you got a regualtory responsibility to do. Cut me a break......so pukes like me don't have to "hint" about it on this board to make it look like you ARE doing your job. Better yet, since I shot the flare, send me your paycheck.

[pct]

I have the same question as Mean and I saw that they run in cycles from an article I saw. It would not be good to reach in a stripers mouth in the middle of the night with those things in there. I might fall out of the boat and scream like a little girl..... LOL

Does anybody have a contact for KDFW, so we can ask these questions?

[Jim Durham]

I just read this story and all I can tell you is that this is all news to me.

StriperFun Guide Service is the largest guide service on the lake. We are located in fishing creek and we have not seen any “thin” fish as the story eludes. All of the hundreds of fish caught have been as “fat as footballs” and full of shad. Our shad population is simply outstanding (no shortage of shad). We have not seen any fish with any sores or spots on a fish’s tongue and mouth. This again is the first we have heard about it.

Since I read the story I have only talked to a few other guides who have seen infected fish (down near Jamestown to the dam), so this appear somewhat isolated and does not appear to be wide spread across the lake. Hopefully this is isolated and will pass


Sincerely,




Captain Jim Durham
Owner StriperFun Guide Service & Captain Jim Marine Electronics
United States Coast Guard Merchant Marine Officer license No. 1037731
Kentucky State License # 007
Toll Free 866-575-3770
[email protected]
www.striperfun.com

Fisheries biologists at Lake Cumberland found a parasitic copepod is the cause of unusual sores on the tongue and mouth of striped bass in the lake.

"When we sampled the lake's striped bass fishery in mid-December, every fish we handled was infested," said John Williams, southeastern district fishery biologist for the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources.

The copepod, genus Achtheres, has been found in recent years in mountain lakes in Arkansas, North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

"The parasites infest the fish's oral cavity and do not affect the fish's flesh. The fish are okay to eat," said Williams.

The external parasites are visible to the naked eye. Young copepods attach to the fish's gill filaments and migrate to its mouth as adults to reproduce. The parasites can impact the gills and hamper respiration in larger fish.

It's uncertain at this time if the parasite is native to the region or has somehow been introduced. Angler transfer of fish through livewells and the introductions of infected fish may have enabled the parasite to spread so quickly from lake to lake in the region.

Williams said the parasites have also been found on a small percentage of largemouth bass in three reservoirs in south central Kentucky: Wood Creek Lake, Laurel River Lake and Cedar Creek Lake.

"Fish get a variety of parasites. They are an annoyance," said Williams. "They would not be the primary cause of a die-off of stripers in Lake Cumberland."

Another mystery is why the parasite spread so rapidly through the population. "We suspect the lowering of body condition has made striped bass more susceptible to the parasites," said Williams.

Lake Cumberland, a 50,250-acre major reservoir near Jamestown, Ky., is the state's premier striped bass fishery and has supported a quality population of stripers since the 1980s.
In 2007, Lake Cumberland was drawn down about 40 feet below summer pool to make repairs to Wolf Creek Dam. Since that time, the body condition of striped bass in the lake has been impacted due to the loss of cool water habitat in the fall.

"Growth rates have declined considerably. In the past, it took striped bass in Lake Cumberland three years to reach the keeper size of 24 inches. Now, we have a majority of fish stockpiling below that length," said Williams. "We believe all this is due to conditions that are stressing fish. They're not eating and are not growing as fast."

However, Williams said the stomachs of striped bass recently sampled were full. "In December, the stripers were up in the creeks gorging on small shad. By all indications, there was a good shad spawn last spring," he said.

An ecological study funded by Virginia's Department of Game and Inland Fisheries found that a number of lakes in the region with populations of striped bass have been affected as early as 2000.

The parasites were first identified on striped bass in the Potomac River in 1915. A study in the 1950s in Louisiana found the parasite on black bass, bullheads and other sport fish species.
Recent research suggests that two species may exist in lakes in the southeastern United States, but the impact of infestations is poorly understood. Researchers found that the abundance of the parasites is seasonal and cyclic and often reflects the overall condition of the host.

Author Art Lander Jr. has been writing about the outdoors since the 1970s. He is a staff writer for Kentucky Afield Magazine.

[stripernut]

oh boy.........