BELLINGHAM - Wayne Landis, professor and chair of Western Washington University's Department of Environmental Sciences, has received a $46,782 grant from Montana State University to research the risk of whirling disease in the Southwestern United States.
Whirling disease, named for the manner in which fish swim when they are affected, is caused by a parasite found in trout that attacks the cartilage and deforms the skeleton of young fish.
The disease is currently affecting the Rio Grande cutthroat trout, a threatened native species of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah. Landis and colleagues will perform an ecological risk assessment and use data collected by Colleen Caldwell of New Mexico State University to determine the risk of whirling disease on these trout and other native trout populations.
The research will lead to improved management for native trout in the Southwest and methods for determining the risks of emergent wildlife diseases.
Landis, the director of WWU's Institute of Environmental Toxicology, has researched risk assessment for 12 years and invasive species for five. For more information, contact Wayne Landis at (360) 650-6136 or e-mail Wayne.Landis@wwu.edu.
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