Retail Baitfish in Michigan Harbor Serious Fish Viral Pathogens

Boonthai, Traimat; Loch, Thomas P.; Zhang, Qingli; Deuren, Michelle Gunn Van; Faisal, Mohamed; Whelan, Gary; Herbst, Seth J.

doi:10.1002/aah.10034

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Anglers and aquarists potentially play a role in these processes, as the transport and exchange of live individuals between and among these hobbyist groups establishes novel pathways and increases the frequency of translocation of propagules (Figure 6). Another pressing conservation issue related to non‐native fish in the context of anglers and aquarists is the translocation of diseases and parasites: recent research has shown that the activities of anglers can transmit diseases by introducing disease‐carrying baitfish (Boonthai et al, 2017, 2018). Thus, anglers and aquarists acting in concert may potentially pose a greater threat to the conservation of native freshwater ecosystems than the individual actions of these hobbyist groups alone.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Intentional or unintentional release of baitfish is the most well‐studied angler‐related pathway of aquatic invasions (Drake & Mandrak, 2014). Survey data on fishing bait usage suggest that baitfish and crayfish are frequently stored before or after fishing, and are translocated between fishing spots (Banha & Anastácio, 2015; Boonthai et al, 2018; Ward, Cudmore, Drake, & Mandrak, 2011). Storing baitfish for longer than a single fishing trip involves some type of vessel, such as an aquarium.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Hobbyists acting simultaneously as anglers and aquarists: Novel pathways for non‐native fish and impacts on native fish

Hirsch

N’Guyen

Burkhardt‐Holm

2021

Aquatic Conservation

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Human translocations of non‐native aquatic species are a global conservation challenge. Aquarists and anglers are two hobbyist groups whose practices are particularly likely to translocate non‐native aquatic species, especially fish. This article aims to stipulate a change of perspective among these hobbyists, who – by acting simultaneously as anglers and aquarists – establish novel pathways for non‐native fish. This study showed that: (i) 51 of 226 respondents to a questionnaire act simultaneously as anglers and aquarists; (ii) 53 of 237 non‐native fish species in the European Union are used for both angling and aquarium hobbies; and (iii) hobbyists write online reports on the catch and exchange of a particularly invasive fish, the round goby (Neogobius melanostomus). This combination of knowledge on how hobbyists use non‐native fish and the ecological impacts of round goby demonstrates how the impact of an invasive species can be influenced by the combined behaviours of anglers and aquarists. We suggest that future research in aquatic conservation should move beyond considering the commercial aquarium trade and angling as separate pathways for translocating non‐native fish, and instead consider these hobbyist groups as interconnected.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hobbyists acting simultaneously as anglers and aquarists: Novel pathways for non‐native fish and impacts on native fish

Hirsch

N’Guyen

Burkhardt‐Holm

2021

Aquatic Conservation

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“…Given the high rates of live baitfish use and the number of anglers using them, this pathway is both high volume and complex, with millions of individual fish moving long distances overland every year (Drake and Mandrak 2014). The concern is warranted with increasing reports of nontarget (including nonnative) species and potentially problematic pathogens in live baitfish available for retail sale at some bait shops in the Great Lakes region (e.g., Boonthai et al 2017, 2018; Mahon et al 2018; Snyder et al 2020; McEachran et al 2021b). While the legal use of live baitfish carries negligible risk of pathogen spread via incidental contact with hooked baitfish, the deliberate release of live, unused baitfish by anglers presents a more serious risk for aquatic invasive species and pathogen dispersal (Rodgers et al 2011).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Patterns of Live Baitfish Use and Release among Recreational Anglers in a Regulated Landscape

McEachran

Mohr²,

Lindsay

et al. 2022

N American J Fish Manag

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The release of live baitfish by anglers has been identified as a high‐risk pathway for the introduction of aquatic invasive species due to the potential for invasive fish, invertebrates, or pathogens to be released simultaneously with the baitfish. Consequently, the release of live baitfish is illegal in many jurisdictions, but little is known about compliance rates or angler motivations for illegal release. To assess the incidence of live baitfish release in Minnesota, a state with significant live baitfish use and substantial recreational fisheries, we administered a mail survey to a random sample of 4,000 anglers who held a 2018–2019 annual fishing license and received 671 completed responses. To mitigate potential recall bias, we also administered 345 intercept surveys at water body access sites around the state to ask anglers about their current day’s behaviors. A total of 481 (72%) of the mail survey respondents reported that they used live baitfish, and of those, 98 (20%) reported that they release their leftover live baitfish into the water at least some of the time. Of the anglers surveyed at water body access sites, 59 (19%) were using live baitfish on the day they were surveyed, and of those, 11 (18%) released their leftover baitfish into the water. The reasons anglers provided for releasing their baitfish included convenience and their mistaken understanding that released baitfish benefit the recipient ecosystem. The potential for invasive species introductions through contaminated baitfish releases is high given the reported release rates. However, there is also significant opportunity for management interventions aimed at changing perceptions and providing convenient disposal alternatives to illegal release to reduce the risk presented by this pathway.

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“…The movement of live bait for use in recreational angling has been identified as a particularly high‐risk and poorly understood pathway for the spread of several concerning aquatic invasive species and pathogens (e.g., viral haemorrhagic septicaemia virus; Boonthai et al., 2017 , 2018 ; Mahon et al., 2018 ; McEachran et al, accepted ; Nathan et al, 2015 ) in the Great Lakes region of the United States (Drake & Mandrak, 2014 ; Goodchild, 2000 ; Litvak & Mandrak, 1993 ; Ludwig & Leitch, 1996 ). Baitfish are small fish, most commonly minnows of the family Leuciscidae (formerly Cyprinidae; Schönhuth et al., 2018 ; Tan & Armbruster, 2018 ), that are fed as forage in aquaculture settings and are used as bait by recreational anglers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An expert‐based risk ranking framework for assessing potential pathogens in the live baitfish trade

McEachran

Sampedro

Travis

et al. 2020

Transbound Emerg Dis

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As global trade of live animals expands, there is increasing need to assess the risks of invasive organisms, including pathogens, that can accompany these translocations. The movement and release of live baitfish by recreational anglers has been identified as a particularly high-risk pathway for the spread of aquatic diseases in the United States. To provide risk-based decision support for preventing and managing disease invasions from baitfish release, we developed a hazard identification and ranking tool to identify the pathogens that pose the highest risk to wild fish via this pathway. We created a screening protocol and semi-quantitative stochastic risk ranking framework, combining published data with expert elicitation (n = 25) and applied the framework to identify high-priority pathogens for the bait supply in Minnesota, USA. Normalized scores were developed for seven risk criteria (likelihood of transfer, prevalence in bait supply, likelihood of colonization, current distribution, economic impact if established, ecological impact if established and host species) to characterize a pathogen's ability to persist in the bait supply and cause impacts to wild fish species of concern. The generalist macroparasite Schizocotyle acheilognathi was identified as presenting highest overall threat, followed by the microsporidian Ovipleistophora ovariae, and viral haemorrhagic septicaemia virus. Our findings provide risk-based decision support for managers charged with maintaining both the recreational fishing industry and sustainable, healthy natural resources. Particularly, the identification of several high-risk but currently unregulated pathogens suggests that focusing risk management on pathogens of concern in all potential host species could reduce disease introduction risk. The ranking process, implemented here for a single state case study, provides a conceptual framework for integrating expert opinion and sparse available data that could be scaled up and applied across jurisdictions to inform risk-based management of the live baitfish pathway.

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Retail Baitfish in Michigan Harbor Serious Fish Viral Pathogens

Cited by 8 publications

References 35 publications

Hobbyists acting simultaneously as anglers and aquarists: Novel pathways for non‐native fish and impacts on native fish

Hobbyists acting simultaneously as anglers and aquarists: Novel pathways for non‐native fish and impacts on native fish

Patterns of Live Baitfish Use and Release among Recreational Anglers in a Regulated Landscape

An expert‐based risk ranking framework for assessing potential pathogens in the live baitfish trade

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