THERMAL ECOLOGY AND STRESS 351 



TABLE 1 



SEASONAL DEPTH PROFILES FOR TOTAL 

 ORGANIC CARBON* (mg/liter) 



* Abbreviations are H, thermally altered location; A, ambient location; and 

 SR, Savannah River. 



Red-Sore Disease and Temperature 



If the mean seasonal surface temperatures are compared with 

 changes in incidence of red-sore disease among bass in Par Pond, then 

 a parallel pattern emerges (Fig. 11). The lowest infection percentages 

 are in winter, followed by peak infections in spring, and subsequent 

 declines in summer and fall. The seasonal changes in infection 

 percentages parallel seasonal temperature changes, except during 

 summer. 



The overall incidence of red-sore disease was only slightly higher 

 among bass from thermal areas (N, 2956; infected, 19%) as compared 

 with bass from ambient locations (N, 2431; infected, 16%). This 

 pattern does not provide a realistic view of the differences in 

 infection percentages among bass in ambient and thermally altered 

 locations, however, because of other variables impacting on the 

 bacteria and the bass. If, for example, the incidence of disease among 

 bass in thermal and ambient locations is compared on a seasonal basis 

 (Fig. 12), the influence of temperature can be seen more clearly. 

 Thus the levels of infection were significantly higher in bass from 

 thermal locations during the fall of 1974, the spring of 1975, and the 

 winter months of all 3 years of study. 



Since it appears that temperature is a highly significant variable, 

 the question that must be considered is, In what way does 

 temperature influence red-sore disease in Par Pond? At the present 



