Scotland to host 2020 sea lice conference

THE biennial international sea lice conference is to be held in Scotland in 2020 following a vote by delegates at this year’s gathering in Punta Arenas, Chile.

Scotland won 37 per cent of the votes, narrowly beating Cairns, Australia, which polled 36 per cent. The Faroe Islands’ bid came in third, with 27 per cent of votes.

This year’s meeting was the 12th in the series, the first having been held in Paris. The aim of the conference is to bring together the world’s most prominent sea lice researchers, to share their experiences in mitigating and controlling infestations.

This year’s conference was organised by the Technological Salmon Institute (INTESAL), the Interdisciplinary Centre for Aquaculture Research (INCAR) and the Aquaculture Institute from the Austral University of Chile.

As well as promoting collaboration and communication between leading international scientists, the conference develops and discusses new lines of research and presents the most up to date findings on sea lice.

Different areas of research are highlighted, including biology of sea lice, epidemiology, chemical controls, sea lice and wild fish, interactions with the environment, integrated handling of the pests, mathematical models, molecular genetics, and regulatory policies.