PRELIMINARY INVESTIGATION OF A POSSIBLE LUNG WORM (PARAFILAROIDES-DECORUS), FISH (GIRELLA-NIGRICANS), AND MARINE MAMMAL (CALLORHINUS-URSINUS) CYCLE FOR SAN-MIGUEL SEA LION VIRUS TYPE-5

Abstract

Colostrum-deprived neonatal Northern fur seal pups (C. ursinus) were exposed to San Miguel sea lion virus type 5 (SMSV-5) by feeding them fish (G. nigricans) infected with virus or fish infected with both the sea lion lung worm larvae (P. decorus) and virus. Virus infection was demonstrated in 8 of 9 pups; 1 of these developed a vesicular lesion on the flipper. In this sequence, P. decorus larvae exposed to SMSV-5 were fed to G. nigricans held at 15.degree. C in a salt water aquarium; 32 days later, these fish were killed, then fed to the fur seal pups. The vesicle developed 22 days subsequent to this and SMSV-5 was reisolated from the lesion. The SMSV-5 persisted for at least 23 days in infected neonatal fur seals. Attempts to establish P. decorus infection in Northern fur seal pups were apparently unsuccessful.