Merchant ships discharging unwanted marine species in close proximity of a French aquaculture area: risks involved.

The most important oyster farming area in Europe is in a close proximity of two medium size merchant ports. Cargo ships deballast in this area before loading, releasing unwanted or noxious marine species. During a sampling campaign aboard these arriving ships, we found in some ballast water samples a huge number of potentially toxic dinoflagellates and some potentially pathogenic bacteria.

Ecology of pathogenic and non-pathogenic Vibrio parahaemolyticus on the French Atlantic coast. Effects of temperature, salinity, turbidity and chlorophyll a.

Vibrio parahaemolyticus is one of the principal bacterial causes for seafood-borne gastroenteritis in the world. In the present study, three sites located on the French Atlantic coast were monitored monthly for environmental parameters over 1 year. The presence of total and pathogenic V.