ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the major diseases of marine and estuarine fishes in three categories: those affecting wild fishes, those affecting captive fishes, and those used as models for biomedical research. The best documentation of infectious diseases in the wild are those which have resulted in massive, acute mortalities, yet there are undoubtedly many infectious diseases that occur in wild fish that have gone unrecorded. Capture methods may also be biased. Bait and lures tend to catch healthy fish, whereas trawls and nets may be biased toward catching moribund fish. Dramatic changes in water temperature have caused fish mortalities in various coastal areas throughout the world. Chronic pollution can cause histopathological changes, including neoplasms. Algal blooms caused by several dinoflagellate species have caused fish kills in coastal waters throughout the world. Biological causes of morbidity and mortality are caused by infectious agents, ranging from viruses to metazoan parasites, algal blooms, or predators.
