Whirling Disease in Alberta

Presented by Lesley Peterson, Alberta Provincial Biologist with Trout Unlimited Canada Lesley Peterson is Trout Unlimited Canada’s Alberta Biologist, based in Calgary. She is a member of the provincial Whirling Disease Committee, which was established late in the summer of 2016 in response to the first detection of Whirling Disease in Canada. Whirling disease, which affects salmonid species such as trout and whitefish, was confirmed in Banff in August 2016 and has since been confirmed at several sites along the Bow River, Crowsnest River, in some rivers within the Red Deer and North Saskatchewan River basins as well, and in some commercial aquaculture facilities. Lesley’s presentation will include background on whirling disease, including the life cycle of the parasite that causes it, the history and distribution of the disease, and how it can affect fish. She will provide an update on the situation in Alberta, and information about how we can prevent the spread of whirling disease and other aquatic invasive species. Pictured here, Lesley releasing a Brown Trout, that was rescued from an irrigation canal, into the Waterton River.