The others are a sexually transmitted tumour in dogs, two distinct cancer lines that threaten Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) and numerous independent tumour lineages affecting bivalves, including clams, cockles and mussels. The latest findings explain the mysterious appearance, more than a decade ago, of black skin lesions in brown bullhead catfish (Ameiurus nebulosus) in a lake straddling the Canada'US border ' and possibly observations elsewhere that date back to the nineteenth century. Anglers and wildlife biologists first noticed the tumours in 2012 in fish from Lake Memphremagog, which stretches from Newport in Vermont to Magog, Canada, with later surveys suggesting that about one-third of the lake's brown bullhead catfish were afflicted1. The skin lesions, a form of melanoma, are inky black and sometimes crusty, with some fish displaying 'tumours on top of tumours' and spread to the brain, liver and other organs, says Julie Dragon, a data scientist at the University...
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