Pomposini Amanda, Blubaugh Jonathan, Boyce Robert Chad, Gauthier David T
Department of Biological Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, Virginia.
Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, Chesapeake, Virginia.
J Fish Dis. 2019 May;42(5):739-749. doi: 10.1111/jfd.12978. Epub 2019 Mar 8.
Back Bay is an oligohaline, coastal bay in southeast Virginia, USA. Since 2004, leeches have been observed in the oral cavities of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) in this body of water. Leeches (Myzobdella lugubris) have previously been documented in the oral cavities of largemouth bass in the Currituck Sound, which is confluent with Back Bay on its southern border. Supplemental stocking of largemouth bass in Back Bay since 2009 has resulted in an increasing population; however, concern exists that leech infestation may be negatively affecting health of larger fish, which are still less abundant than expected. Despite the wide distribution of this leech, there is little available literature regarding its health impacts on hosts. In this study, we examine potential impacts of oral leech infestations on stress markers and haematological parameters of largemouth bass in Back Bay. No significant changes in plasma glucose or cortisol were observed between leech-infested and uninfested fish, and haematological parameters were not significantly different between the groups. Further, there was no evidence of systemic infections associated with leech infestation.
后湾是美国弗吉尼亚州东南部一个低盐度的沿海海湾。自2004年以来，在这片水域的大口黑鲈（Micropterus salmoides）口腔中发现了水蛭。此前在柯里塔克湾的大口黑鲈口腔中记录到了水蛭（Myzobdella lugubris），柯里塔克湾在其南部边界与后湾相连。自2009年以来，后湾对大口黑鲈进行补充放养，导致其数量不断增加；然而，人们担心水蛭感染可能会对体型较大的鱼的健康产生负面影响，而这些较大的鱼的数量仍然比预期的要少。尽管这种水蛭分布广泛，但关于其对宿主健康影响的文献却很少。在本研究中，我们研究了口腔水蛭感染对后湾大口黑鲈应激标志物和血液学参数的潜在影响。在感染水蛭和未感染水蛭的鱼之间，未观察到血浆葡萄糖或皮质醇有显著变化，两组之间的血液学参数也没有显著差异。此外，没有证据表明水蛭感染与全身感染有关。
