Changes in aerobic microflora of skin and gills of Mediterranean sardines (Sardina pilchardus) during storage in ice.

Sardines from the Adriatic Sea were examined fresh and after 4 and 8 days of storage in ice. A total of 1500 strains isolated were identified from the gills and the surface of the fish. Pseudomonadaceae, Neisseriaceae, Flavobacterium/Cytophaga, Enterobacteriaceae, coryneform bacteria and Micrococcaceae were the most common bacteria in fresh fish. During storage the pseudomonads (mainly the non-fluorescent strains) increased and became the dominating microflora; the Neisseriaceae (Moraxella, Psychrobacter and Acinetobacter) showed a distinct increase during the first 4 days in ice; the percentage of the other bacterial groups clearly decreased. On the gills the quantitative changes in the microflora were less pronounced than on the surface.