Due to the lack of multiple samplings, temperature or seasonal effects
could not be assessed in this study although there were the dramatic increases
of epitheliocystis prevalence and intensity in the same striped
trumpeter population. However, there was an assumption stating that
the epizootics of epitheliocystis in cultured fish commonly emerged during
the spring and summer (Bruno et al., 1997). Nowak and Clark (1999)
also suggested that the increased water temperature in summer months
resulted in the tendency of greater prevalence in farmed Atlantic salmon
in Tasmania. Additionally, the onset of massive mortalities of sharpsnout
sea bream were reported to coincidewith severe epitheliocystis and high
water temperatures of 21–23 °C (Katharios et al., 2008).