Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015:7:471-96.
doi: 10.1146/annurev-marine-010814-015646. Epub 2014 Sep 12.

Infectious diseases affect marine fisheries and aquaculture economics

Kevin D Lafferty  1 , C Drew Harvell, Jon M Conrad, Carolyn S Friedman, Michael L Kent, Armand M Kuris, Eric N Powell, Daniel Rondeau, Sonja M Saksida
Affiliations
Review

Infectious diseases affect marine fisheries and aquaculture economics

Kevin D Lafferty et al. Ann Rev Mar Sci. 2015.

Abstract

Seafood is a growing part of the economy, but its economic value is diminished by marine diseases. Infectious diseases are common in the ocean, and here we tabulate 67 examples that can reduce commercial species' growth and survivorship or decrease seafood quality. These impacts seem most problematic in the stressful and crowded conditions of aquaculture, which increasingly dominates seafood production as wild fishery production plateaus. For instance, marine diseases of farmed oysters, shrimp, abalone, and various fishes, particularly Atlantic salmon, cost billions of dollars each year. In comparison, it is often difficult to accurately estimate disease impacts on wild populations, especially those of pelagic and subtidal species. Farmed species often receive infectious diseases from wild species and can, in turn, export infectious agents to wild species. However, the impact of disease export on wild fisheries is controversial because there are few quantitative data demonstrating that wild species near farms suffer more from infectious diseases than those in other areas. The movement of exotic infectious agents to new areas continues to be the greatest concern.

Keywords: abalone; externality; fish; prawns; salmon; sea lice.

PubMed Disclaimer

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources