In regard to fish becoming toxio from feeding on poisonous 

 material, the natives of the islands of the Caribbean have implicated the 

 following diverse sources; 



lo Copper banks and copper contaminated water. 



2. Manchineel berries from the manchineel tree (Hippomane mane ine 11a ), 



3. Poisonous jelly fish or poisonous coral. 

 J40 A "poisonous marine alga-cabriza." 



Although one or another of these beliefs have been advanced by investigators 

 as the causative agent of Ciguatera, the literature does not furnish any 

 data to substantiate any of them,, Most of these beliefs were held by the 

 aboriginal Indians of the Caribbean, and have been either slightly modified 

 or enlarged upon in the course of the last four centuries • 



In a recent paper on the occurrence of fish poisoning in the 

 Pacific, an attempt was made to make analogy of fish poisoning with mussel 

 poisoning. Mussel poisoning has been ascribed to the dinof lagellate , 

 Gonyolax catenella, which reputedly is eaten by the mussel, rendering it 

 toxic. Since all the fish causing Ciguatera are carnivorous pelagic species, 

 it is hardly probable that they would feed on toxic plankton, jelly fish, 

 coral, or berries. The possibility of fish becoming toxic from feeding on 

 copper banks is also highly improbable, since all fish caught near copper 

 banks are not toxic and conversely toxio fish are found in areas where there 

 are no copper banks . 



Bacterial Origin 



Several investigators have suggested that the toxin is formed by 

 bacteria present in the fish and derived from the fish's native habitat, 

 or that it is produced by bacteria which have contaminated the fish in the 

 process of handling . Most of the work done does not substantiate these 

 theories. Very few bacteriological examinations have been made. Cohen, et al. 

 (I9I46) reported that bacteriological examination of the fish responsible for 

 poisoning implicated no organisms. Schneck (19^5) attempted to isolate 

 "causative organisms", with no success, from the feces of a dog which became 

 ill after eating toxic fish. Lee and Pang (19U5) in a fish poisoning case 

 study stated, "Bacteriological examinations did not reveal any organisms 

 on culture or direct smears." It is believed that these investigators 

 referred to the common food poisoning bacteria, since it would have been 

 highly improbable that no bacteria were present. 



The only reliable bacteriological data concerning fish poisoning 

 have been gathered by Costa Mandry (1928, 1933* 19^0). In one outbreak 

 involving 25 individuals in 5 families and causing the deaths of 2 dogs, 

 some of the original lot of fish were examined bacteriologically. Bacillus 

 proteus vulgaris, Escherichia coli, Alkaligenes fecalis , and Salmonella 

 enter id itis were isolated . 



