Copyright 1998 Sun-Sentinel Company
Sun-Sentinel (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
April 3, 1998, Friday, FINAL EDITION
SECTION: LOCAL, Pg. 1B
LENGTH: 729 words
HEADLINE: RASH OF BIRD DEATHS SENDS SCIENTISTS TO THEIR LABS
BYLINE: ROBERT McCLURE ; Staff Writer
BODY:
State scientists are scrambling to figure out whether a rash
of dead sea birds washing ashore in South and Central Florida
could be related to a bizarre new fish disease.
Dozens of dead pelicans, loons and gannets have turned up in
recent weeks at beaches in Broward and Palm Beach counties, and
state officials have received reports of dead birds farther up
the coast as well.
The reports are emerging as state biologists struggle to pinpoint
the cause of a weird new disease among fish that causes a grotesque
wasting away of their flesh. Affected fish develop ugly sores
but live for some time after being stricken, continuing to swim
despite injuries such as tails and stomachs rotting away. In one
case, a mullet swam past a state inspector with its intestines
hanging out through a lesion.
The outbreak of the fish disease is centered in Stuart, about
30 miles north of West Palm Beach, although there are scattered
reports of fish with similar lesions from northern Palm Beach
County to near Daytona Beach, state scientists say.
''There's no evidence yet that there's any connection between
the dead birds and this ( fish disease) , but the (Florida) Game
and Fresh Water Fish Commission has been busy with reports of
these birds,'' said Ann Forstchen, a state researcher.
Scientists suspect the fish are affected by a newly discovered
microorganism whose close cousin killed millions of fish in North
Carolina and Maryland in recent years. Both organisms seem to
thrive in brackish-water areas overloaded with sewage-like pollution.
Officials are uncertain whether the organism found in Florida,
Cryptoperidiniopsis, can harm people. But the similar microbe,
Pfiesteria piscicida, is known to cause human health problems
by releasing a toxin.
That toxin, which is on the verge of being identified, apparently
is unleashed by the one-celled Pfiesteria when schools of fish
swim by, weakening the fish so the lurking Pfiesteria can attack
and eat them.
It's unclear whether the Florida cousin, Cryptoperidiniopsis,
works the same way. But some scientists strongly suspect it, and
the Crypto also was found at the fish kill sites in North Carolina
and Maryland.
''The pelicans and ospreys are eating these sick fish,'' said
Wade Aycock of Stuart, one of the first residents to call the
fish-disease outbreak to the attention of authorities.
Marilyn Spalding, a University of Florida bird pathologist,
said she is getting a lot of calls lately about dead birds on
the East Coast.
''We have seen no common trend, other than that a lot of the
birds are emaciated,'' she said.
Three of the birds Spalding examined came from the Busch Wildlife Sanctuary in northern Palm Beach County. Two had fishhooks in their stomachs, but the cause of the other's death was unclear.
David Hitzig, director of the Busch sanctuary, said it is possible
the bird deaths are a natural occurrence, or at least not related
to the diseased fish.
Perhaps the pelicans are having trouble finding enough food
because there are so many birds migrating through this area now,
eating lots of fish, he said.
Loons, he said, sometimes molt at this time of year, losing
their flight feathers. If they are caught in the ocean, instead
of the placid inland waters where they know how to find food,
they could be weakened to the point of death, Hitzig said.
Gannets, which normally hang out far out in the ocean, tend
to congregate at this time of year and might have spread a fungus
that attacks the birds' lungs and air sacs, Hitzig said.
The unusual weather that has plagued people from Florida to
California might also be affecting the birds, perhaps altering
water flows, which could make it more difficult for birds to find
food, he speculated.
The strange weather might also be related to the fish disease,
some environmentalists and residents of the Stuart area think.
For months, the South Florida Water Management District has sent
billions of gallons of polluted floodwaters into the Indian River,
near Stuart, from Lake Okeechobee. The lake is brimming because
of heavy rains.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection is asking
people who observe possibly diseased fish to call its fish kill
hotline at 800-636-0511. People who see sick or dead birds are
asked to call the Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission
at 561-625-5122.
LOAD-DATE: April 3, 1998