While the primary environmental source of Streptococcus
iniae is still to be determined, this study indicated
that fish found co-habiting the barramundi
enclosures may serve as an important reservoir of the
bacterium. This was further highlighted by the inability
to culture S. iniae from the water away from the
influence of the farm. However, water sampling close
to the farm resulted in numbers of Streptococci similar
to those reported by Sakata & Kawazu (1990) in freshwater tilapia ponds, at bacterial concentrations
demonstrated to be pathogenic
to barramundi via waterborne
exposure.