HEMORRHAGIC AREAS IN THE MOUTH OF FARMED TURBOT, SCOPHTHALMUS-MAXIMUS (L)

An epizootic in juvenile turbot reared on a farm located in the Ria de Vivo, Galicia, Northwest Spain, is described. The diseased turbot did not display unusual swimming behaviour; the external signs of the discase were abdominal distension and haemorrhagic areas in the mouth. Internal examination of the fish showed an accumulation of reddish fluid in the peritoneal cavity. Microbiological analysis of the diseased fish revealed the presence, in pure culture in all the organs and lesions examined, of a bacterium which was characterized biochemically as Vibrio splendidus biotype 1. The virulence tests showed that the V. splendidus biotype I isolate was pathogenic for rainbow trout (LD50: 2.2 x 10(4)) and also for turbot (LD50: 1.2 x 10(4)). The treatment of the fish using flumequine incorporated into the feed was effective in offsetting the mortality rate.