Economics of robots and automation in field crop production

Precision Agriculture - This study reviewed research published after 1990 on the economics of agricultural mechatronic automation and robotics, and identified research gaps. A systematic search was...     

Verrucosamide,a Cytotoxic 1,4-Thiazepane-Containing Thiodepsipeptide from a Marine-Derived Actinomycete

A new cytotoxic thiodepsipeptide, verrucosamide (1), was isolated along with the known, related cyclic peptide thiocoraline, from the extract of a marine-derived actinomycete, a Verrucosispora sp., our strain CNX-026. The new peptide, which is composed of two rare seven-membered 1,4-thiazepane rings, was elucidated by a combination of spectral methods and the absolute configuration was determined by a single X-ray diffraction study. Verrucosamide (1) showed moderate cytotoxicity and selectivity in the NCI 60 cell line bioassay. The most susceptible cell lines were MDA-MB-468 breast carcinoma with an LD₅₀ of 1.26 µM, and COLO 205 colon adenocarcinoma with an LD₅₀ of 1.4 µM. Also isolated along with verrucosamide were three small 3-hydroxy(alkoxy)-quinaldic acid derivatives that appear to be products of the same biosynthetic pathway.     

Performance of Mixed Species and Mono‐specific Algal Diets for Culture of Larval Western School Prawns,Metapenaeus dalli

The effect of three mono‐specific and four combinations of the diatoms Chaetoceros muelleri, Chaetoceros calcitrans, and the chlorophyte Tetraselmis suecica on survival, development, and dry weight of the western school prawn, Metapenaeus dalli, was assessed from protozoea I until mysis I. The development and dry weight of larvae were significantly greater when fed diets comprising C. muelleri and/or T. suecica. A fourth diet, consisting of all three microalgal species also performed just as well. Survival alone was a poor measure of the performance of the various diets. Larvae fed with C. calcitrans, either alone or in a mixed diet with either C. muelleri or T. suecica, had significantly slower development and lower dry weight. Overall performance, assessed using the normalized biomass development index, determined that both mono‐specific and mixed diets containing C. muelleri and T. suecica were among the best for M. dalli larvae. These results for M. dalli are consistent with those found for commercially grown penaeid prawns. This study enhances the limited knowledge on the feeding requirements of metapenaeid prawn larvae. Moreover, the results will help improve hatchery methods for the aquaculture‐based enhancement of M. dalli in the Swan‐Canning Estuary and potentially increase the abundance of this iconic recreational species.     

Regional differences in aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) seedling response to an established nursery protocol

New Forests - In seedling-based reforestation operations, seed source is known to be an influential variable affecting outplanting success. Adaptive variation among seed sources may also be an...     

Variation in prey selection and foraging success associated with early‐life ontogeny and habitat use of American paddlefish (Polyodon spathula)

Many fishes are planktivorous during early life and switch to piscivory or consume larger food items as ontogeny progresses. In contrast, paddlefish start as particulate feeders and later become filter feeders. Few studies have identified food items essential for paddlefish growth, survival and recruitment surrounding this ontogenetic diet shift. The objectives of this study were to investigate (i) prey types consumed by paddlefish, (ii) variability in prey selection surrounding an ontogenetic diet shift and (iii) whether habitat affected paddlefish prey selection or foraging success. We analysed gut contents of 189 wild age‐0 paddlefish from the middle Mississippi River (MMR) and also conducted a laboratory experiment to address these objectives. We found that paddlefish primarily foraged on benthic macroinvertebrates in the MMR, which differed from previous studies in lentic systems, suggesting young paddlefish prey selection may be labile depending on habitat (i.e., lotic versus lentic). Dominant prey of wild‐caught and experimental age‐0 paddlefish were caddisfly larvae (Trichoptera), followed by hemipterans and amphipods. We found little evidence that habitat attributes affected foraging success, but the most common prey items consumed were associated with wing dike habitat and the upstream and downstream tips of alluvial islands. Our experimental study revealed that if provided a mixture of organisms, age‐0 paddlefish will primarily consume macroinvertebrates while age‐1 paddlefish will mainly filter zooplankton. Overall results suggest young paddlefish prey selection can be highly variable, but also heavily reliant on a narrow group of prey resources.     

First evidence of spawning migration by goldfish (Carassius auratus); implications for control of a globally invasive species

Goldfish (Carassius auratus) was one of the first fishes to be domesticated and has been widely introduced across the globe, but is now considered one of the world's worst invasive aquatic species. Surprisingly, there is a dearth of information on its spatial and temporal movement patterns, which hampers the development of effective control programmes. We examined the movement patterns of an introduced population of C. auratus in a south‐western Australian river using passive acoustic telemetry. The study population had a high residency index within the array (i.e. proportion of all days at liberty that, on average, each fish was detected by a receiver) with fish being detected on 64% of days. The individuals were also reasonably mobile, travelling a mean of 0.30 km (linear river kilometres).day^‐1 within the array, and one fish moved 231.3 km over the 365‐day study period (including 5.4 km in a 24 hr period). Importantly, C. auratus displayed significant seasonal movement patterns including a clear shift in habitats during its breeding period with most mature individuals being detected in an off‐channel wetland during that time. The results of this study strongly suggest that C. auratus undertook a spawning migration into a lentic habitat. These results have important implications for developing control programmes for the species, such as targeting connections to off‐channel lentic systems during its breeding period.     

Comparative survival and growth performance of European lobster larvae,Homarus gammarus,reared on dry feed and conspecifics

A bottleneck of crustacean larval culture concerns nutrition and associated cannibalism in communal rearing systems, which impact on larval survival, development and growth. For early‐stage European lobster, Homarus gammarus larvae, feeding ecology and body composition are largely unknown. We initiated four progressive feeding experiments (novel feed types, feeding regime and feed size and cannibalism effects) on growth and survival, to inform and update husbandry protocols. Performance of larvae offered a dry commercial feed was not significantly different compared with a conventional wet plankton feed of the same ration and size grade (both within 600–1,000 μm). Further experiments found that the same ration of dry feed offered six times daily improved development and growth, over the conventional regime of three times daily. Small‐grade dry feed (particles: 250–360 μm) improved larval performance compared with a larger feed (360–650 μm). Larvae were also fed different proportions of dry feed and/or conspecifics in both communal and individual rearing systems (the latter preventing cannibalism via segregation). Individually reared larvae, fed only dead conspecifics, displayed the greatest survival (80%) to postlarvae. This underlines the impact of cannibalism on survival and nutrition in H. gammarus larviculture. A final experiment analysed H. gammarus zoea 1 composition, identifying deficiencies in ash and carbohydrate in lobster feeds. This suggests a need for a species‐specific, formulated dry feed for H. gammarus larviculture. Our research represents the first investigation of H. gammarus larval composition and dietary requirements and highlights decreased growth potential associated with providing nutrition solely from generic commercial feed.     

Holding wild Snow crab,Chionoecetes opilio: effects of stocking density and feeding on survival and injury

In this study the effects of different stocking densities on survival, injury and weight of captive male snow crab were examined. The first experiment (I) was carried out in square plastic tanks (700 L) with stocking densities of 100 (L), 150 (M) and 200 kg m^?3 (H) for 30 days. In a second experiment (II) snow crabs were kept at a stocking density of 50 kg m^?3 and were either fed (F) or not fed (S) for the same period of 35 days. The last experiment (III), was carried out with stocking densities of 25 kg m^?3 for 21 days with two groups, one with inactivated claw and one without rubber bands, with three replicates per treatment. In the first experiment mortality (H = 27, M = 26 and L = 36%) and occurrence of injuries (H = 27, M = 20 and L = 16%) were high in all groups. The weight loss during the experimental period was; H = 15.3, M = 10.9 and L = 15.5 g, and was not significant different between the groups. In experiment II the mortality (F = 13% and S = 14%) and injuries were lower (F = 12% and S = 17%). The average weight increased in the fed treatment and decreased in the starved treatments. In the last experiment there was no mortality in any of the groups and the levels of injury were low (5% and 7%). The results show that adult male snow crab cannot be stored at densities equal to or higher than 25 kg m^?3 for 3 weeks without risk of mortality.