Occurrence of anisakid larvae (Nematoda: Ascardidia) in fishes from Alaska and Idaho

Authors

Richard Heckmann, Brigham Young University
Terry Otto, Brigham Young University

Abstract

All 25 sablefish (Anoplopoma fimbria) examined from two bays near Sitka, Alaska, were infected with anisakid larvae. There were 1 to 11 larvae per infected fish, with worms encysted in the musculature of the body wall of 5 fish and in the liver of 4 fish. For the other hosts the viscera was the site of infection. Chinook salmon (Onchorhynchus tshawytscha) from Barrow, Alaska, and Obsidian, Idaho, were also infected with anisakid larvae. These data extend the known northern distribution of the anisakids along the Pacific Coast for sablefish and chinook salmon. The pathogenesis of the migratory pathway of anisakid larvae is described, and comments on human health implications are presented.

Recommended Citation

Heckmann, Richard and Otto, Terry (1985) "Occurrence of anisakid larvae (Nematoda: Ascardidia) in fishes from Alaska and Idaho," Great Basin Naturalist: Vol. 45: No. 3, Article 5.
Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/gbn/vol45/iss3/5