Mapping rice-planted areas using time-series synthetic aperture radar data for the Asia-RiCE activity

In Asia, rice is a staple cereal crop and the continent accounts for about 90 % of the global rice production and consumption. Statistics on the areas planted with rice or production of paddy rice are fundamental to agriculture-related decisions or policy-making. Asia-Rice Crop Estimation & Monitoring (Asia-RiCE) aims to develop rice-related information, such as paddy field maps, rice growing conditions, yield, and production, using remote sensing tools and disseminate the same at the local and global scales. In this paper, we propose a methodology for the identification of rice-planted areas by using multi-temporal SAR images; a software named INternational Asian Harvest mOnitoring system for Rice (INAHOR) was developed to manipulate the proposed algorithm. The INAHOR uses the imagery observed both at the time of planting of rice and grown-up stages. In this study, two thresholds needed for the INAHOR were optimized based on the detailed land cover data collected through a field survey. Rice-planted areas across the study area in Japan were identified by the INAHOR using the RADARSAT-2 Wide Fine beam mode data. The classification results of RADARSAT-2 VV and VH polarizations were compared. The data with VH polarization showed a higher total accuracy of 83 % with ?20.5 dB and 3.0 dB for the minimum and range thresholds, respectively. The INAHOR is currently being used with the RADARSAT-2, ALOS, and ALOS-2 SAR data in the Southeast Asian countries to assess the robustness of the thresholds and classification accuracies under the framework of Asia-RiCE.     

Demographic survey of the yellow-phase Japanese eel Anguilla japonica in Japan

Catch statistics and biological data of the Japanese eel Anguilla japonica from 12 river systems in nine prefectures of Japan (36°N, 140°E–31°N, 130°E) during 1999–2004 were analyzed in order to evaluate the demography of A. japonica in Japan. Significant differences in biological characteristics of 6388 eels were found among the river systems. Fishery catches of eels in all locations have declined, but the magnitudes or patterns of decline seem to be different. Of sex-identified eels, mean total lengths ± SD (mm) of females (n = 3776) and males (n = 962) were 495.6 ± 104.3 and 412.9 ± 80.7, respectively, and overall sex ratio (% female) was 79.6 %. Mean age (years) and growth rate (mm year^?1) were 5.0 ± 1.9 and 96.7 ± 38.6 for females (n = 3643) and 3.6 ± 1.7 and 120.5 ± 65.4 for males (n = 907), respectively. This study highlights the demographic heterogeneity of the A. japonica among the studied river systems, which suggests that it is important to conserve a variety of habitats in multiple river systems as an inclusive management target in addition to restoration of the diversity of habitats for eels in a single river system.     

Scale calcification in the goldfish in vitro: histological and quantitative analysis

The external layer of a teleost fish scale is composed of type I collagen, an amorphous matrix substance and hydroxyapatite crystals. Calcification of this layer can be inhibited in the scale-regenerating process under calcium- and phosphate-deficient (CaDPD) conditions, and can be facilitated by incubation in physiological saline. The aim of this study was to evaluate this model of calcification using histological and quantitative analysis in order to promote further understanding of the mechanism of calcification in fish scales. We found that the external layer of the scales produced under CaDPD conditions contained more densely aligned collagen fibrils with a small amount of the amorphous matrix substance. The CaDPD scale contained only one-third of the amount of calcium and phosphate present in the control fish. After 4 hours of incubation, a two- to threefold increase in calcium content and a 1.5-fold increase in phosphate content were observed. Calcification proceeded in the external layer, and mineral deposits grew only in the electron-dense matrix substance. We conclude that this model would be suitable for studying the early process of fish scale calcification that occurs in the noncollagenous substance. The electron-dense substance may contain key molecules that promote calcification.     

Dual effects of reversed winter–spring temperatures on year‐to‐year variation in the recruitment of chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus)

To clarify the effects of temperature on the recruitment of chub mackerel (Scomber japonicus) in the North Pacific, we investigated the influence of winter surface temperature (WST) on spawners at the time of maturity around the spawning grounds and the influence of ambient spring temperature on larvae using estimated temperature (ET) obtained from particle tracking experiments. We found a significant positive correlation between ET approximately 10 days following hatching and the recruitment per spawning stock biomass (RPS) after 2000. The closer (more meandering) the Kuroshio Current (KC) axis was in relation to the spawning ground, the higher (lower) the spring surface temperature and the higher (lower) RPS was in the spawning ground. In contrast, WST inside KC near the maturity/spawning ground was significantly negatively correlated with RPS. A significant negative correlation between the temperatures in winter and spring was detected in the area after 2000, when the conditions of the Pacific decadal oscillation index and the stability of the Kuroshio Extension were synchronous, indicating that KC shifted northward during this time. The reversed temperature pattern was consistent with the winter–spring movement of KC axis in the offshore direction and was correlated with the winter–spring difference in the intensity of the Aleutian low. These results suggest that the annual variation in chub mackerel recruitment after 2000 was strongly affected by the combined effects of ambient temperature because of the reversal of conditions that occurred between winter and spring around the maturity/spawning ground, which was related to the KC path.     

Supplemental effect of cholyltaurine and soybean lecithin to a soybean meal-based fish meal-free diet on hepatic and intestinal morphology of rainbow trout <Emphasis Type="Italic">Oncorhynchus mykiss</Emphasis>

The supplemental effects of cholyltaurine and soybean lecithin to a defatted soybean meal (SBM)-based fish meal-free diet on the hepatic and intestinal morphology of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss were investigated. A fish meal-based diet (FM), three fish meal-free diets supplemented either with soybean lecithin (SL), bovine gall powder (BG) or cholyltaurine (C-tau) and an unsupplemented fish meal-free diet (NFM), were given to fish (−11 g) for 10 weeks. The growth was the lowest in fish fed diet NFM, intermediate in fish fed diet SL and the highest in fish fed diet FM, BG and C-tau. Hepatocytes of fish fed diet NFM were atrophied, and the distal intestine of these fish showed abnormal features: disintegrated microvilli and fatty degeneration in epithelial cells and increased amount of connective tissue in the submucosa. Hepatic and intestinal histological features in fish fed diets SL, BG and C-tau were similar to those in fish fed diet FM. These results indicate that soybean lecithin, bovine bile salts and cholyltaurine have similar effects on normalizing the hepatic and intestinal morphologies of rainbow trout fed the SBM-based diet, although growth promotion effect was limited in the soybean lecithin.     

Influence of soya saponin, soya lectin, and cholyltaurine supplemented to a casein-based semipurified diet on intestinal morphology and biliary bile status in fingerling rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss

To investigate the cause of the changes in intestinal morphology and biliary bile status of rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss fed defatted soybean meal (SBM)-based diets, casein-based semipurified diets supplemented with soya saponin, soya lectin, and cholyltaurine were fed to rainbow trout for 6 weeks. An unsupplemented control diet and a SBM-based diet were also tested as references. Poor development of microvilli and pinocytotic vacuoles, and accumulation of large vacuoles in the epithelial cells were observed in the distal intestine of fish fed diets containing saponin but not cholyltaurine. Hyperplastic connective tissue in the mucosal folds of the distal intestine was observed in fish fed a diet containing both saponin and lectin but not cholyltaurine. However, intestinal histological features in fish fed diet supplemented with cholyltaurine and lectin and/or saponin were similar to those in the control diet group. Liver morphology and biliary bile status were not affected by saponin and lectin. These results suggest that the abnormal features of the distal intestine of rainbow trout fed SBM-based diets are caused by the combination of soya saponin and soya lectin, and that supplemental cholyltaurine plays certain roles in normalizing the intestinal abnormalities caused by the saponin and lectin.     

Comparison in taste and extractive components of boiled dorsal muscle and broth from half-smooth golden puffer Lagocephalus spadiceus caught in Japan with those of the same fish imported

The taste and extractive components of boiled dorsal muscle and broth prepared from half-smooth golden puffer Lagocephalus spadiceus caught in Japan and from those imported from China were compared. In the sensory test, the first taste, elasticity, and saltiness of boiled muscle from Japanese (domestic) fish were higher than those of the imported fish, whereas the orthonasal fishy smell of the imported fish was higher than that of the domestic fish. The first taste, aftertaste, retronasal fishy smell, sweetness, saltiness, and umami of the broth prepared from dorsal muscle of the domestic fish were higher than those of the imported fish, whereas orthonasal fishy smell and bitterness of the imported fish were higher than those of the domestic fish. Most panelists preferred the overall taste of the domestic fish to that of the imported fish. The concentration of trimethylamine in the trichloroacetic acid extracts from boiled muscle and broth of the imported fish was higher than that of the domestic fish, suggesting that this substance contributes to the orthonasal fishy smell of the imported fish.     

Post-molt processes of cuticle formation and calcification in the Japanese mitten crab <Emphasis Type="Italic">Eriocheir japonicus</Emphasis>

This study examines the following in the Japanese mitten crab: (1) the structure of the exoskeleton with special reference to its calcification; (2) the progression of post-molt cuticle formation and calcification. In the crab, the structure and calcification state of the exoskeleton at the molt and during the inter-molt stage were similar to those of other crustaceans. During the inter-molt, the exoskeleton consisted of four cuticle layers; the outermost epicuticle, the exocuticle, the endocuticle and the innermost membrane layer. Intense calcification was observed in the exo- and endocuticle. At the molt, the synthesis of the epi- and exocuticle was already complete, and the addition of the endocuticle began after the molt. Calcification of the exocuticle initiated soon after the molt, but there was a delay between endocuticle matrix synthesis and calcification. Histology showed that the process of calcification was similar to that in other crustaceans. However, calcium concentrations within the exoskeleton continued to increase and never reached the levels of the inter-molt stage at the end of the experiment. This suggests that the Japanese mitten crab is relatively slow to calcify compared to other crustaceans.