Project Information

Title: HRM Program: Herring Disease Program II 17120111-E

Project Year and Number: 2017: 17120111-E

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: 2023: 23120111-E , 2022: 22120111-E , 2021: 21120111-E, 2020: 20120111-E, 2019: 19120111-E, 2018: 18120111-E, 2016: 16120111-K, 2015: 15120111-K, 2014: 14120111-K, 2013: 13120111-K, 2012: 12120111-K

Principal Investigator (PI): Paul Hershberger (USGS)

Managing Agency: USGS

Assisting Personnel: None

Project Website: https://pwssc.org/herring-disease-research/

Research Location: Prince William Sound

Restoration Category: Monitoring, Research

Injured Resources Addressed: Pacific Herring

Abstract:

Using an approach that involves a combination of field- and laboratory-based studies, we propose to investigate fish health factors that may be contributing to the failed recovery of Pacific herring populations in Prince William Sound. Field studies will provide infection and disease prevalence data that will inform the ASA model, serological data that will indicate the prior exposure history and future susceptibility of herring to VHS, and diet information that will provide insights into the unusually high prevalence of Ichthyophonus that occurs in juvenile herring from Cordova Harbor. Laboratory studies will validate the newly-developed plaque neutralization assay as a quantifiable measure of herd immunity, provide further understanding of disease cofactors including temperature and salinity, investigate the possibility of an invertebrate host for Ichthyophonus, and assess the virulence of other endemic pathogens to Pacific herring. Information from the field and laboratory studies will be integrated into the current ASA model, a novel ASA-type model that is based on the immune status of herring age cohorts, and a novel mixture-cure simulation model for VHS. The Herring Disease Program (HDP) is embedded within the Herring Research and Monitoring Program, and the success of the HDP relies heavily on contributions from companion Principle Investigators including Steve Moffitt (platform for the collection of pathogen prevalence data), Dr. Kristen Gorman (collection of juvenile Pacific herring from Cordova Harbor), Dr. Trevor Branch (incorporation of pathogen and resistance information in to the ASA models). Additionally, this project relies on contributions from Principle Investigators in the Long Term Monitoring Program (Dr. Rob Campbell – zooplankton collections) and partners in the Lingering Oil Program (Dr. Liz Bowden).


Proposal: View (473 KB)

Reports:
Annual Report FY17: View (363 KB)
Final Report: See Project 17120111-E

Publications from this Project: None Available