RAPID: Effects of the 2023-24 El Nino on Fish Disease and Population Dynamics in the Galapagos Islands

在一个日益由人类主导的世界里，疾病是野生动物面临的越来越大的威胁。人们对海洋鱼类疾病知之甚少，但近几十年来与海洋变暖有关的疾病有所增加。在厄瓜多尔的加拉帕戈斯群岛，极端温暖的海水导致了几种不同鱼类的溃疡性皮肤病。这种皮肤病的暴发与强烈的厄尔尼诺现象有关。该项目通过确定不同物种受到影响的比例和检查野生受感染的鱼类，解决了野生动物疾病日益增长的威胁和加拉帕戈斯群岛鱼类目前爆发的皮肤病。受感染的鱼正在接受可能导致疾病的微生物的评估，海洋温度正在与其他可能导致皮肤病的因素一起进行监测。分离的微生物正被用于实验室测试，以确定它们是否会引起与现场看到的相同的疾病，以确定这种溃疡性皮肤病的原因。该项目包括对美国和厄瓜多尔学生的培训，以及为高中生开发英语和西班牙语虚拟教学模块。研究小组正在与加拉帕戈斯国家公园密切合作，以应对2023-24年厄尔尼诺事件造成的鱼类疾病和相关种群减少的威胁，并帮助修改渔业政策，以反映物种的脆弱性。通过公共研讨会和在线学习材料，这项工作作为一个平台，教授所有年龄段的学生和行业利益相关者关于气候变化和野生动物疾病的问题，并让他们参与进来。这项研究促进了人们对这些溃疡性皮肤病如何和为什么在加拉帕戈斯爆发的理解，这对海洋保护区和渔业管理非常重要，可以对了解和解决野生鱼类以及水产养殖业和水族馆行业的疾病产生深远影响。气候变化增加了海洋热浪的频率和严重程度，例如热带东太平洋在极端厄尔尼诺事件期间经历的热浪。一场始于2023年夏季的极端厄尔尼诺现象促成了几种海鱼溃疡性皮肤病的爆发。该项目：1)确定溃疡性皮肤病的程度、受影响的物种、人口、环境和生态因素，以及与厄尔尼诺事件发生有关的疾病进展的时间；2)通过组织学和遗传学分析、病原体培养和实验室挑战试验，确定可能导致溃疡性皮肤病的病原体(S)；以及3)通过建立165种珊瑚礁鱼的形态生态特征数据库，并利用多元排序分析来测试这些特征预测厄尔尼诺相关鱼类种群相对于群岛16个地点8年鱼类种群数据库的下降的能力，研究厄尔尼诺事件对鱼类种群的影响。这个奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为是值得支持的。

Disease is a growing threat facing wild animals in a world increasingly dominated by humans. Marine fish diseases are poorly understood but have increased in recent decades in connection with ocean warming. In the Galapagos Islands of Ecuador, extreme warm waters have led to ulcerative skin disease in several different species of fish. An outbreak of this skin disease is underway in association with a strong El Niño event. This project addresses the growing threat of wildlife disease and the current outbreak of skin disease in fish of the Galapagos Islands by determining what proportion of different species are affected and by examining infected fish from the wild. Infected fish are being assessed for microbes that might cause the disease, and ocean temperature are being monitored along with other factors that may foster skin disease. Isolated microbes are being used in lab tests to see if they cause the same disease seen in the field in order to confirm the cause of this ulcerative skin disease. This project includes training for students in the US and in Ecuador and development of a virtual teaching module for high school students in English and Spanish. The research team is working closely with the Galapagos National Park to address the threat of fish disease and associated population declines caused by the 2023-24 El Niño event, and to help modify fisheries policy to reflect species' vulnerability. Through public symposia and online learning materials, this work serves as a platform for teaching and engaging students of all ages and industry stakeholders on issues of climate change and wildlife disease. The research advances understanding of how and why these ulcerative skin disease outbreaks occur in the Galapagos, which is very important for marine reserve and fisheries management and can have far-reaching impacts for understanding and addressing diseases in wild fish as well as in aquaculture and aquarium industries.Climate change increases the frequency and severity of marine heatwaves, such as those experienced in the Tropical Eastern Pacific Ocean during extreme El Niño events. An extreme El Niño that began in summer 2023 and has facilitated an outbreak of an ulcerative skin disease in several species of marine fish. This project: 1) establishes the extent of ulcerative skin disease, species affected, demographic, environmental, and ecological correlates, and timing of disease progression relative to the development of the El Niño event; 2) determines the putative pathogen(s) responsible for ulcerative skin disease through histological and genetic analyses, pathogen cultures, and laboratory challenge trials; and 3) examines the effects of the El Niño event on fish populations by building a database of morpho-ecological traits for 165 species of reef fish and using multivariate ordination analysis to test the ability of these traits to predict El Niño-associated declines relative to an 8-year database of fish populations at 16 sites across the archipelago. The results advance understanding of a widespread emerging fish disease and reef fish populations dynamics in a warming ocean.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.