Clostridium botulinum in the Gulf of Thailand

A survey was carried out to determine the incidence of Clostridium botulinum in samples of mud, sand, and fish from the Gulf of Thailand. Enrichment cultures from 762 samples of mud and sand from seven different areas around the Gulf were tested. C. botulinum type D was present in 10 samples, and type E was present in 2 samples taken from the west coast at Hua Hin. Enrichment cultures from 16,773 fish grouped into 2,151 samples yielded 10 filtrates containing C. botulinum type D and 5 containing type E. All of the toxic filtrates were obtained from samples of fish taken from the west coast of the Gulf of Thailand.