Aquatic Animal Health Subprogram: subprogram conference ‘Emergency Disease Response Planning and Management’
Aquatic disease preparedness assessment
Tactical Research Fund - Aquatic Animal Health Subprogram: determining the susceptibility of Australian species of prawns to infectious myonecrosis
Australian prawn production at around 22 kilotonnes is valued in excess of $250 million. Clearly, the prawn fishery is an important natural resource for Australia that is also the basis for a significant export industry. In addition, prawn aquaculture is a significant industry in northern Australia and accounts for around 14% of the total volume of Australian prawn production. Infectious myonecrosis is a viral disease that has caused significant disease outbreaks and mortalities in farmed Penaeus vannamei in Brazil and South-East Asia, including Indonesia. While P. vannamei is considered the principal host, experimental infection of P. stylirostris (Pacific blue shrimp) and P. monodon (black tiger shrimp) has been reported. The susceptibility of other shrimp/prawn species is unknown. Information on the susceptibility of prawn species important to Australia, including banana prawns (Fenneropenaeus merguiensis), brown tiger prawns (P. esculentus) is lacking. This project would provide information on the susceptibility of two important species of Australian prawns to exotic IMNV. Such information is important to policy-makers, regulators and primary producers with respect to relevant biosecurity issues at all levels of government.