Parasite preying on shrimp in Oregon
Associated Press, 08/19/2005
PORTLAND, Ore. ----Biologists are concerned about a non-native parasite that's preying on mud shrimp up and down the Oregon Coast's estuaries, potentially playing havoc with sensitive ecosystems....."the parasite sucks the animal's blood and other nutrients, destroying its reproductive system" ...said Chapman, who heads the Biological Invasions Program at OSU's Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport. "But they're all done reproducing. They become zombies."
Chapman said Japan is the only other place the parasite has been found, but it's unclear where the organism originated. He said the only way it could have crossed the ocean would have been by "human intervention."...more...
