List of Bacteria for Fish

Bacteria can make fish sick and even kill them. In nature both saltwater and freshwater fish can contract bacterial diseases, and aquarium fish are even more at risk. An attentive aquarium owner may lessen this danger with proper care. Fish farmers, fishermen and aquarium owners will benefit if they learn which bacteria are likely to cause disease in fish.

  1. Aeromonas

    • Several bacteria species of the genus Aeromonas can affect fish. Aeromonas salmonicida causes infectious internal ulcers in the tissues of salmon and trout, and new strains are causing problems with other fish in the Baltic, according to the University of Florida and Oxford Journals. Other species cause an ailment called fin rot, which often injures aquarium fish. Some Aeromonas bacteria possess whiplike structures called flagellae that enable them to move about, according to the Journal of Bacteriology.

    Pseudomonas

    • Bacteria of the genus Pseudomonas also afflict fish with fin rot and internal ulcers. This bacterium effectively attaches itself to the tissue of the host fish by means of little hairlike structures called fimbriae, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information.

    Flexibacter

    • Flexibacter is a pathogen that produces lesions on the skin of fish. As its name implies, its structure is less rigid than most other bacteria, and even though it has no flagellae, it can move along by flexing and twisting its body. Flexibacter psychrophilus is a bacterium that loves cold water, as the species name psychrophilus implies. Fish that live in warm water have another species to contend with, namely, Flexibacter columnaris, according to the Massachusetts Office of Coastal Management.

    Renibacterrium

    • The prefix "reni-" refers to the kidneys. As you would expect, Renibacterium salmoninarum afflicts fish with kidney disease, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. On occasion it may affect other internal organs as well.

    Yersinia

    • A bacterium of the genus Yersinia caused the notorious bubonic plague. The fish pathogen is a different species: Yersinia ruckeri. It causes internal hemorrhages and may be just as deadly as the species that afflicts humans, according to the National Center for Biotechnology Information. The disease that it causes is called enteric redmouth because an affected fish will bleed in its mouth.

    Mycobacterium and Vibrio

    • Both Mycobacterium and Vibrio include a serious human pathogen. Mycobacterium tuberculosis causes tuberculosis; Vibrio cholerae causes cholera. Other species of Mycobacterium and Vibrio cause serious sickness in fish. These fish pathogens can also be fatal, according to the University of Florida.