This doesn't sound good

Infected Fish?

Michelle Malkin warned me not to read the Associated Press, but now and then I get a kick out of reading their idiotic headlines at Newsday. The AP is wont to fill in background on current news stories with timelines or lists. Today, one of their often amusing lists caught my eye. This list was headlined:

List of Fish Banned for Transport

AP: October 29, 2006, 2:05 PM EST
Fish susceptible to viral hemorrhagic septicemia, which poses no risk to humans but causes internal bleeding in fish. A government crackdown on live fish shipments from the Great Lakes states is intended to check the spread of the virus.

Now viral hemorrhagic septicemia sounds serious. That the AP felt they needed to tell me there was no risk to humans made me even more curious. I looked to see what fish were on the list.

Atlantic cod Black crappie Bluegill Bluntnose minnow Brown bullhead Brown trout Burbot Channel catfish Chinook salmon Coho salmon Chum salmon Emerald shiner Freshwater drum Gizzard shad Grayling Haddock Herring Japanese flounder Largemouth bass

Muskellunge Pacific cod Pike Pink salmon Pumpkinseed Rainbow trout Redhorse sucker Rock bass Rockling Round goby Smallmouth bass Sprat Turbot Walleye White bass White perch Whitefish Yellow perch

This list seems pretty comprehensive. Are there any other fish we commonly catch for sport, eating or use for bait? It would appear that everything but carp and suckers are at risk. Looking farther, I found this little story that the list was supposed to illuminate: Fish Farmers Angry Over Shipping Ban - Newsday.com: "In an emergency order last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service banned interstate transport of 37 species of live fish from the eight states adjacent to the Great Lakes. Importing those species from the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec also was prohibited."

Like I said, this doesn't sound good.