SINDERMANN: POLLUTION-ASSOCIATED DISEASES AND ABNORMALITIES 



Figure 2. — Generalized fin erosion in weakUsh, Cynoscion regalis, (above) and in summer flounder (belowl. Note that in the weakfish 

 the anal, caudal, and pelvic fins are eroded, while the dorsal fins are not usually damaged. In contrast the summer flounder shows 

 erosion of wide areas of the fin fringes. 



( 1973) found that as many as 60^^ of all stargazer, 

 Uranoscopusjaponicus, sampled from Suruga Bay 

 had evidence of disintegration of caudal and pec- 

 toral fins. Six other species also had abnormal fins. 

 An increase in occurrence of fin erosion and 

 other epidermal lesions (ulcers and lymphocystis) 

 in flatfish from the Irish Sea since 1970 was re- 

 ported by Perkins et al. (1972). Fin damage, 

 unknown before 1970, was observed in 

 plaice, Pleuronectes platessa, and dab, Limanda 

 limanda, taking the form of erosion or total loss of 

 caudal and lateral fins. Ulcers were described that 

 "did not have the typical appearance of bacterial 

 ulcers . . . ." The authors pointed to ocean dump- 

 ing of toxic wastes, particularly of PCB's, as a 

 possible factor contributing to observed preva- 

 lences of epidermal lesions, but no clear relation- 

 ship was demonstrated. Another study conducted 

 in the Irish Sea in 1972 (Shelton and Wilson 1973) 

 did not identify fin erosion in plaice or dab, but did 



find a low incidence of "healed fin damage (proba- 

 bly caused by previous capture and rejection or by 

 passage through the cod-end mesh)." 



The possible role of environmental chemical 

 contamination in the etiology of fin erosion 

 emerges more clearly as additional studies are 

 reported. Fish from the New York Bight, reported 

 in studies by Mahoney et al. (1973), Murchelano 

 (1975), and Ziskowski and Murchelano (1975), 

 exist in a highly contaminated area, with chemi- 

 cals such as heavy metals and petroleum residues 

 in sediments far above background levels. In 

 California, McDermott and Sherwood*^ fount DDT 

 to be significantly higher in fish with fin erosion, 

 and PCB levels slightly higher in such fish than in 

 normal individuals. Both contaminants were sig- 

 nificantly higher in Palos Verdes fish than in fish 



''McDermott, D. J., and J. Sherwood. 1975. Annual re- 

 port. Dep. Fish. Mar. Fish. Program, Coastal Water Res. Proj., 

 El Segundo, Cahf , p. 37. 



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