Hundreds of Fish In Michigan Have Died From Herpes
Sometimes you'll stumble on a story that you almost think is a joke, that comes from The Onion or maybe Hard Times. Then you see it's from a reputable news source and you start to wonder what the heck you're reading. This happened to me recently as a news story broke out about by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources. Apparently, hundreds of common carp deaths in Lake Orion that took place earlier this Summer are being linked to koi herpesvirus.
Now I'm glad in a sense that the virus was strictly linked to certain species, because the way my mind works was, I thought someone went in there and gave them herpes (by some means). Luckily, that's not the case, however it still does surprise me that this is even a thing. The DNR says it can actually spread quickly through the epidermis and gills. This is actually quite common for a few species of fish, according to Gary Whelan, the Fisheries Division Research Program manager:
As the case with most herpesviruses, KHV is very specific on which fish species it will infect and only affects common carp, koi and goldfish. This is only the third detection of this non-native virus in Michigan waters, and it is known to kill large numbers of its host species at times. KHV does not affect any other fish species and has no implications for any other birds, mammals or humans.
At least during the pandemic we don't have to worry about being taken out by fish herpes.