Occurrence and pathogenicity of Yersinia ruckeri at fish farms in northern and central Finland

Abstract

Abstract. Salmonid fish at fish farms in northern and central Finland and perch, Perca fluviatilis L., roach, Rutilus rutilus (L.), and whitefish, Coregonus sp., from four lakes in central Finland were studied between 1985 and 1990 for the occurrence of Yersinia ruckeri. The bacteria were found in fish from both areas, but in most cases, only single diseased salmon, Salmo salar L., brown trout, S. trutta L., rainbow trout, Oncorhynchus mykiss (Walbaum), whitefish and perch were encountered and were always connected with stress conditions. One clinical outbreak occured in salmon fingerlings in northern Finland, and the fish were successfully treated with trimethoprim‐sulpha. Monthly monitoring of lake fish revealed two symptomless carrier perch in two lakes. Outwith the main study a moribund perch with yersiniosis was found in a polluted lake, and for the first time in Finland, a rainbow trout was also found to have contracted yersiniosis in a small private pond. Sorbitol‐positive and negative isolates have been found to occur in both moribund and carrier farmed fish, indicating that the sorbitol test is not essential when evaluating the pathogenicity of Y. ruckeri.