|
Members' Update 28/09
Dear members,
In this Update:
- NEW MEMBER
- NEW EU REGULATION PROVIDES A NEW COUNTRIES LIST
- INTEREST IN OFI PAVILION AT INTERZOO 2010
- EUS
- ADVERT IN OFI BOOK
- KHV IN GOLDFISH AND STURGEONS?
- ZAMBEZI HIT BY KILLER FISH DISEASE
- FOREIGN THREAT TO KERALA DELICACY
*****
NEW MEMBER
We welcome the following new member:
GROENE WERELD PROMOTIE
Hugo J. Smal
Weimansweg 75 3057 MK Rotterdam Netherlands
Tel: +31 648 793 532, e-mail: mailto:h.smal@me.com, website: www.arirangkoi.nl.
The Groene Wereld Promotie is the representative of Korean fish-breeders. Head office in Korea: Goyang Koifarm 6-1, Hwajeong-Dong, Deokyang-Gu, Goyang-Si, Kyeongi-Do, Korea. Managing director Korea: Mr. Kim Young Su.
NEW EU REGULATION PROVIDES A NEW COUNTRIES LIST
During Aquarama we received the draft of a new EU regulation to adapt the list of countries allowed to export fish, crustaceans and mollusks to the EU. On 6 August the new Regulation was published. It can be downloaded here. Very important in this legislation is the footnote at the end of the countries table, allowing the import of crustaceans from all OIE member countries. It is easily overseen, but without it the conclusion of the document would be that the import of shrimps would be prohibited!
INTEREST IN OFI PAVILION AT INTERZOO 2010
We are investigating the possibilities for an OFI pavilion at Interzoo 2010. We aim at small booths of about 6-7 m2. If you are interested in a booth in such a pavilion, please contact the OFI Secretariat urgently.
EUS
In Germany the veterinary authorities have indicated that in case of outbreak of EUS in an ornamental fish facility, all the fish in the facility will be destroyed. The measures to address outbreaks of EUS are already in place despite the postponement of measures with respect to the importation of susceptible species. OFI has contacted the European Commission on this topic as this EU policy brings to a standstill the willingness by importers to have fish checked on diseases by veterinarians and if EUS is found, to report this to the government. Only a very few importers, but also few retailers, will be motivated enough to report EUS to the authorities and with that sign their own bankruptcy. As always, OFI has closely cooperated with EPO on this matter. Initiatives are also taken to adjust the EU list of susceptible species for EUS with the OIE list, which will mean a very large reduction of species involved.
ADVERT IN OFI BOOK
The secretariat has started the preparation for the next OFI book. This book will provide a standard for scientific names in our industry. It will become a standard work with not only names and trade names of species of ornamental fish, crustaceans and mollusks; we will also try to include a large number of photo's of the species. It will be a supporting tool to filli in health certificates on-line in the OFI website in the future.
As always you can have an advert in this handbook:
Full page 495 Euro
Half page 295 Euro
Interested: please contact the OFI secretariat.
KHV IN GOLDFISH AND STURGEONS?
On 28 July an outbreak of Koi Herpes Virus (KHV) was reported to the Swedish competent authority and published by the OIE. Outbreaks of KHV are not rare as recently the UK and Belgium reported an outbreak. Special in the Swedish case was that not only carp (Cyprinus carpio) was tested positive, but also goldfish (Carassius auratus) and sturgeons (Acipenser). We cannot yet estimate the consequence of this finding.
In the press:
ZAMBEZI HIT BY KILLER FISH DISEASE
Risks spreading to other parts of Africa
FAO, Rome
A killer disease is decimating fish stocks in the Zambezi River Valley, threatening the food security and livelihoods of rural populations in an area shared by seven countries, FAO warned today.
An alert issued by FAO's Global Information and Early Warning System (GIEWS) said the disease, known as Epizootic Ulcerative Syndrome, or EUS, is caused by the fungus Aphanomyces invadans, which forms ugly lesions on fish and has a high rate of mortality. It is one of the most serious aquatic diseases affecting finfish.
"If not properly contained there is the risk of the disease spreading to other countries surrounding the Zambezi River as well as river systems in the region," said Rohana Subasinghe, Senior Fishery Resources Officer. The 1,390,000 km² Zambezi River Basin is home to some 32 million people, of whom 80 percent are dependent on agriculture or fishing and fish farming.
Up and downstream
Indications are that EUS, which was first confirmed in Africa in 2007, is spreading both upstream and downstream of the Zambezi and risks taking hold in other parts of Africa. The GIEWS alert serves notice on the international donor community that a food security crisis is developing and that assistance and funding will likely be required.
The most affected country is Zambia, where two thirds of the Zambezi River Basin lies. Over 2000 villages and some 700,000 people are at risk of food insecurity because fish is not only a source of revenue in many rural districts but is also the cheapest available source of protein.
Fish infected with EUS do not normally pose health hazards to humans, although the deep ulcerations and tissue decay characteristic of the disease could harbor secondary, more threatening pathogens. It is therefore recommended not to eat EUS-contaminated fish unless it is thoroughly cooked.
Irreversible damage
EUS-affected fish is un-marketable, causing severe economic loss to fishers and fish farmers. Some 50 species of finfish are susceptible to the disease, with outbreaks often affecting younger fish in particular so that irreversible damage to fish populations and severe loss of biodiversity often occurs.
EUS first appeared in Japan in the early 1970s then spread to Australia and much of Asia, while the United States was hit in 1984. It is now present in at least 24 countries in the world.
FAO has since 2007 been helping build capacities for coping with the disease in the seven Zambezi River Basin countries - Angola, Botswana, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe. This includes basic EUS diagnosis, targeted EUS surveillance and basic aquatic animal health management.
Urgent requests
In response to urgent requests from a number of countries FAO, in close cooperation with the Paris-based World Organization for Animal Health (OIE), is helping develop and implement an aquatic biosecurity framework for Southern Africa and build capacity for the management of Zambezi River resources.
The program will strengthen institutional and human capacity for managing aquatic animal health in the wild in the affected countries through appropriate policies and regulations.
Control of EUS in natural waters such as rivers is impossible but is relatively simpler in fish farming operations where a number of simple biosecurity measures can minimize or prevent its spread. They include preventing possible carriers or vectors getting into water bodies or fish ponds, removing dead fish and improving water quality.
FOREIGN THREAT TO KERALA DELICACY
From http://www.telegraphindia.com
G.S. MUDUR
A hungry catfish from South America has sneaked into Kerala's fresh waters and is threatening the native karimeen, a must-have for foreign tourists and a hit with chefs on Indian culinary shows. The armoured catfish, Pterygoplichthus multiradiatus, is among at least four ornamental aquarium fishes that have slipped into Kerala's fresh water canals where they are competing with local fish, according to researchers who have been monitoring fish species in the state.
The catfish is found in fresh water ponds in Thrissur district and in a canal in Thiruvananthapuram where it appears to have established a substantial population and is replacing local herbivorous fish, the researchers said in a report published in the journal Current Science, from the Indian Academy of Sciences. "It's a voracious feeder and a prolific breeder," said Appukuttan Nair Bijukumar, an associate professor of aquatic biology and fisheries at the University of Kerala, Kariavattom. "The exotic catfish and pearl spot (karimeen) are both algae-eaters," he said.
But the catfish is also a potential predator. "It can feed on the eggs of pearl spot and other local fish," said Kaimal Krishnakumar, a team member and programme official at the Ashoka Trust for Research on Ecology and the Environment, Bangalore.
Scientists have also observed fairly large populations of two other freshwater fish species, the platy fish and the guppy, natives of central and South America, in the Chalakudy river near Thrissur district in recent years.
In another survey last year, biologists collected 15 males and six females of another aquarium fish - the three-spot gourami, a native of Sumatra - from Vembanad lake in Alappuzha district, although its ecological impact is unclear.
The researchers believe the ornamental fish moved into the fresh water either through accidental or intentional release of aquarium fish. Aquarium fish keeping is popular in the state. Kerala is India's third largest ornamental fish-breeding state and the Marine Products Export Development Authority in Kochi estimates that the state has nearly 500 fish breeding units. "When fish outgrow their aquariums, people may just throw them into freshwater ponds," Krishnakumar said. "We also have open pond breeding. The fish may escape into the local waters when such ponds overflow during rains."
Ecologists caution that exotic species when introduced into new habitats have the potential to proliferate wildly.
*****
With kind regards,
Alex Ploeg & Roberto Hensen
OFI Secretariat
|
|
|
