Infections by Renibacterium salmoninarum and Nanophyetus salmincola Chapin are associated with reduced growth of juvenile Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha (Walbaum), in the Northeast Pacific Ocean.

We examined 1454 juvenile Chinook salmon, Oncorhynchus tshawytscha (Walbaum), captured in nearshore waters off the coasts of Washington and Oregon (USA) from 1999 to 2004 for infection by Renibacterium salmoninarum, Nanophyetus salmincola Chapin and skin metacercariae. The prevalence and intensities for each of these infections were established for both yearling and subyearling Chinook salmon. Two metrics of salmon growth, weight residuals and plasma levels of insulin-like growth factor-1, were determined for salmon infected with these pathogens/parasites, both individually and in combination, with uninfected fish used for comparison. Yearling Chinook salmon infected with R. salmoninarum had significantly reduced weight residuals. Chinook salmon infected with skin metacercariae alone did not have significantly reduced growth metrics. Dual infections were not associated with significantly more severe effects on the growth metrics than single infections; the number of triple infections was very low and precluded statistical comparison. Overall, these data suggest that infections by these organisms can be associated with reduced juvenile Chinook salmon growth. Because growth in the first year at sea has been linked to survival for some stocks of Chinook salmon, the infections may therefore play a role in regulating these populations in the Northeast Pacific Ocean.

Growth and condition of juvenile coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch relate positively to species richness of trophically transmitted parasites.

The aims of this study were first, to test the hypothesis that metrics of fish growth and condition relate positively to parasite species richness (S(R)) in a salmonid host; second, to identify whether S(R) differs as a function of host origin; third, to identify whether acquisition of parasites through marine v. freshwater trophic interactions was related to growth and condition of juvenile salmonids. To evaluate these questions, species diversity of trophically transmitted parasites in juvenile coho salmon Oncorhynchus kisutch collected off the coast of the Oregon and Washington states, U.S.A. in June 2002 and 2004 were analysed. Fish infected with three or more parasite species scored highest in metrics of growth and condition. Fish originating from the Columbia River basin had lower S(R) than those from the Oregon coast, Washington coast and Puget Sound, WA. Parasites obtained through freshwater or marine trophic interactions were equally important in the relationship between S(R) and ocean growth and condition of juvenile O. kisutch salmon.