Dick Withey has been a fishing guide for 27 years, but viral hemorrhagic septicemia was still a foreign concept to him.
Withey, of Skaneateles, knew little of the fish virus before the state Department of Environmental Conservation's recent announcement that VHS had made its way into Skaneateles Lake. And, he said, he's still learning.
Since April, he's witnessed tens of thousands of dead fish floating in the lake's waters.
“I've never seen anything like it in my life,” said Withey, owner/operator of Lakeview Charters.
But so far, Withey said, it doesn't appear as though the disease has affected the fish that his company is currently going after -species like lake and rainbow trout and landlocked salmon -or his business.
“We haven't caught the fish that we usually do so far in Skaneateles Lake, but the conditions haven't been that great either,” Withey said, noting that a recent catch yielded perfectly healthy fish.
Still, state officials are taking a serious look at VHS, which up until now had only been identified in one other New York state location outside of the Great Lakes. The virus had previously been confirmed in Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence River, Lake Erie, the Niagara River and Conesus Lake.
The virus is not a threat to humans, DEC officials say.
“There's no reason to be afraid of it, there's no reason not to fish,” Dan Bishop, a regional fisheries manager for the DEC, said, adding that eating a fish that carries the virus won't harm you.
VHS, which causes a fish's tissues to hemorrhage, is incurable and affects all sizes of fish. Thus far, the DEC has identified VHS in rock bass and smallmouth bass in Skaneateles Lake, Bishop said.
DEC staff investigated a fish kill of rock and smallmouth bass at Skaneateles Lake on May 8. The fish were then given to Cornell University for testing, and when the results came out positive, the fish were sent to the U.S. Geological Survey Lab in Seattle for confirmation. The samples came back positive last week, Bishop said.
Bishop said that it's unclear what effect this particular strain of VHS will have on the fish in Skaneateles Lake.
“We don't have a good feel for it yet because it's still so new to us,” he said.
The obvious source of the disease is bait fish, Bishop said, but there are other possibilities and the DEC will never officially know how VHS got into Skaneateles Lake.
Robert Werner, head of the town of Skaneateles' Lake Monitoring Committee and a former professor with the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, called the virus “a serious problem.”
The disease affects all sizes of fish, and often those infected do not exhibit any external signs of having the disease. While not all infected fish develop VHS, they can continue to spread it to others.
Bishop said it remains to be seen whether fish can develop an immunity to it.
“I think once you're infected, you're stuck,” Werner said.
Though Withey also sees VHS as a serious issue, he calls it the least of fishermen's problems nowadays.
“The clarity of the lake is not what it was just a couple of years ago,” said Withey, who is a farmer and said that he works with the city of Syracuse on management practices to do his part to protect the lake.
Auburn resident Dave Kukella, who has been fishing for 35 years and for five years offered charters on Skaneateles and Owasco lakes, echoed some of Withey's concerns.
Kukella, a member of the Owasco Watershed Lake Association, stopped running Fish Tale Charters in large part to spend more time with his family, but another consideration was what he says is the downhill slide in the overall water quality in both Owasco and Skaneateles lakes.
“It definitely made fishing a lot more difficult. It made it less enjoyable, especially since I knew what the fishing once was,” Kukella said, noting that in Owasco Lake he's seen landlocked salmon disappear and a decline in brown and rainbow trout.
Those species have declined in Owasco Lake, Bishop said, but it is most likely a result of predation on newly stocked fish by the very abundant lake trout population and/or walleye population.
The DEC is considering cutting back on the lake trout stocking again for that reason, Bishop continued, noting that lake trout are long-lived and that the DEC's angler diary cooperators tend to release many of the lakers that they catch.
Withey, who has fished Skaneateles Lake for an estimated 50 years, said that in recent memory he's seen bigger and better fish on Skaneateles than in years past, something that he attributes to possibly more nutrients in Skaneateles. But he's not so sure that's a good thing.
“We've all had these concerns about the lake is changing, and it just doesn't seem like a natural thing to me,” Withey said.
As for VHS, Kukella thinks that it could act as a deterrent to some fishermen. He also said that he believes he found VHS in a brown trout in Owasco Lake a few years back, as it was full of blood splotches when he filleted it.
“To me, that's VHS four, five years ago,” Kukella said, adding that he's been part of the DEC's angler diaries program in the past but feels frustrated with what he calls the DEC's lack of action to address problems with the Finger Lakes. “There's no doubt in my mind.”
Bishop said that there are other fish diseases that look similar to VHS and that the samples must be analyzed in the lab for official confirmation.
What you can do
The DEC is advising that in addition to following the fish health regulations, anglers remain vigilant in keeping live wells clean. Wells should be cleaned with a solution of 10 percent bleach to water (1 3/4 cups bleach per gallon of water). This kills VHS and other aquatic invasive species.
People should contact their nearest DEC regional office if they witness 100 or more dead or dying fish. If you have questions about the virus, call 518-402-8896, e-mail fwfish@gw.dec.state.ny.us or visit www.dec.ny.gov.
Regulations to help prevent the spread of VHS and other diseases into the state's inland waters can be viewed at www.dos.state.ny.us/info/register/2007/jun6/pdfs/rules.pdf.
Since April, he's witnessed tens of thousands of dead fish floating in the lake's waters.
“I've never seen anything like it in my life,” said Withey, owner/operator of Lakeview Charters.
But so far, Withey said, it doesn't appear as though the disease has affected the fish that his company is currently going after -species like lake and rainbow trout and landlocked salmon -or his business.
“We haven't caught the fish that we usually do so far in Skaneateles Lake, but the conditions haven't been that great either,” Withey said, noting that a recent catch yielded perfectly healthy fish.
Still, state officials are taking a serious look at VHS, which up until now had only been identified in one other New York state location outside of the Great Lakes. The virus had previously been confirmed in Lake Ontario, the St. Lawrence River, Lake Erie, the Niagara River and Conesus Lake.
The virus is not a threat to humans, DEC officials say.
“There's no reason to be afraid of it, there's no reason not to fish,” Dan Bishop, a regional fisheries manager for the DEC, said, adding that eating a fish that carries the virus won't harm you.
VHS, which causes a fish's tissues to hemorrhage, is incurable and affects all sizes of fish. Thus far, the DEC has identified VHS in rock bass and smallmouth bass in Skaneateles Lake, Bishop said.
DEC staff investigated a fish kill of rock and smallmouth bass at Skaneateles Lake on May 8. The fish were then given to Cornell University for testing, and when the results came out positive, the fish were sent to the U.S. Geological Survey Lab in Seattle for confirmation. The samples came back positive last week, Bishop said.
Bishop said that it's unclear what effect this particular strain of VHS will have on the fish in Skaneateles Lake.
“We don't have a good feel for it yet because it's still so new to us,” he said.
The obvious source of the disease is bait fish, Bishop said, but there are other possibilities and the DEC will never officially know how VHS got into Skaneateles Lake.
Robert Werner, head of the town of Skaneateles' Lake Monitoring Committee and a former professor with the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry, called the virus “a serious problem.”
The disease affects all sizes of fish, and often those infected do not exhibit any external signs of having the disease. While not all infected fish develop VHS, they can continue to spread it to others.
Bishop said it remains to be seen whether fish can develop an immunity to it.
“I think once you're infected, you're stuck,” Werner said.
Though Withey also sees VHS as a serious issue, he calls it the least of fishermen's problems nowadays.
“The clarity of the lake is not what it was just a couple of years ago,” said Withey, who is a farmer and said that he works with the city of Syracuse on management practices to do his part to protect the lake.
Auburn resident Dave Kukella, who has been fishing for 35 years and for five years offered charters on Skaneateles and Owasco lakes, echoed some of Withey's concerns.
Kukella, a member of the Owasco Watershed Lake Association, stopped running Fish Tale Charters in large part to spend more time with his family, but another consideration was what he says is the downhill slide in the overall water quality in both Owasco and Skaneateles lakes.
“It definitely made fishing a lot more difficult. It made it less enjoyable, especially since I knew what the fishing once was,” Kukella said, noting that in Owasco Lake he's seen landlocked salmon disappear and a decline in brown and rainbow trout.
Those species have declined in Owasco Lake, Bishop said, but it is most likely a result of predation on newly stocked fish by the very abundant lake trout population and/or walleye population.
The DEC is considering cutting back on the lake trout stocking again for that reason, Bishop continued, noting that lake trout are long-lived and that the DEC's angler diary cooperators tend to release many of the lakers that they catch.
Withey, who has fished Skaneateles Lake for an estimated 50 years, said that in recent memory he's seen bigger and better fish on Skaneateles than in years past, something that he attributes to possibly more nutrients in Skaneateles. But he's not so sure that's a good thing.
“We've all had these concerns about the lake is changing, and it just doesn't seem like a natural thing to me,” Withey said.
As for VHS, Kukella thinks that it could act as a deterrent to some fishermen. He also said that he believes he found VHS in a brown trout in Owasco Lake a few years back, as it was full of blood splotches when he filleted it.
“To me, that's VHS four, five years ago,” Kukella said, adding that he's been part of the DEC's angler diaries program in the past but feels frustrated with what he calls the DEC's lack of action to address problems with the Finger Lakes. “There's no doubt in my mind.”
Bishop said that there are other fish diseases that look similar to VHS and that the samples must be analyzed in the lab for official confirmation.
What you can do
The DEC is advising that in addition to following the fish health regulations, anglers remain vigilant in keeping live wells clean. Wells should be cleaned with a solution of 10 percent bleach to water (1 3/4 cups bleach per gallon of water). This kills VHS and other aquatic invasive species.
People should contact their nearest DEC regional office if they witness 100 or more dead or dying fish. If you have questions about the virus, call 518-402-8896, e-mail fwfish@gw.dec.state.ny.us or visit www.dec.ny.gov.
Regulations to help prevent the spread of VHS and other diseases into the state's inland waters can be viewed at www.dos.state.ny.us/info/register/2007/jun6/pdfs/rules.pdf.