Skin Illness on Whitefish (Coregonus nelsonii)

Observation: For the past week we been catching sick fish on Nigliq Channel and today upstream from Nigliq Channel to the Colville River. In all the years I've been fishing I never caught any fish like this. Caught 3 more sick fish with same markings and this time one had some kind of growth coming out from its mouth on October 14, 2013. Most people in our community eat this fish. Sam Kunaknana

North Slope Borough (NSB) Consult: Heather Dingman, NSB Health Impact Manager notified Todd Sformo of NSB Department of Wildlife Management (DWM). "Three white fish were received over the weekend, examined and tissue prepared for ADF&G Fish Pathology Lab. The fish were sent by NSB Wildlife by Goldstreak to the lab."

Alaska Department of Fish and Game Consult. LEO spoke with Ted Meyers, Fish Pathology Laboratory, and he stated, "that these fish showed signs of earlier net injuries. At this time of year the fish are spawning and they are usually stressed and more vulnerable to illness. The marks seen in the photo and on the fish are largely net lesions from fish who escaped from the net and then developed a fungus in the skin lesions. The greenish color in the lesions can be from algae and dirt that can get caught in the wound. The insides of these fish were healthy and normal. The damaged flesh from fish should be removed and discarded but the healthy looking meat is fine to eat. ADF&G reminds us that the number of fish with these kinds of injuries will increase the longer that nets are in the water. Good digital photo of fish are very helpful for diagnosis, and use of the macro feature on close up shots will improve the impact quality. Samples sent to the lab should not be frozen but instead, kept on gel ice for storage and shipment."