Harnessing the potential for otolith microchemistry to foster the conservation of Amazonian fishes

1. Freshwater environments host roughly half of the world’s fish diversity, much of which is concentrated in large, tropical river systems such as the Amazon. Fishes are critical to ecosystem functioning in the Amazon River basin but face increasing human threats. The basic biology of these species, and particularly migratory behaviour, remains poorly studied, in part owing to the difficulty associated with conducting tagging studies in remote tropical regions.
2. Otolith microchemistry can circumvent logistical issues and is an increasingly important tool for studying fish life histories. However, this approach is still new in the Amazon, and its potential and limitations to inform fish conservation strategies remain unclear.
3. Here, otolith microchemistry studies in the Amazon are reviewed, highlighting current possibilities, and several key factors that limit its use as a conservation tool in the Amazon are discussed. These include the dearth of spatiotemporal elemental data, poor understanding of environment–fish–otolith pathways, and insufficient funding, facilities, and equipment.
4. A research initiative is proposed to harness the potential of this technique to support conservation in the Amazon. Key aspects of the proposal include recommendations for internal and external funding, which are critical to acquiring and maintaining technical staff, cutting-edge equipment, and facilities, as well as fostering regular scientific meetings and working groups. Meetings can facilitate a systematic approach to investigating environment–otolith pathways, broadening the chemical baseline for most Amazonian tributaries, and exploring potential valuable elements.
5. These outcomes are urgently needed to conserve biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in the Amazon, especially given threats such as widespread hydroelectric damming. The initiative proposed here could make otolith microchemistry an important, cost-effective tool to inform and foster conservation in the Amazon, and act as a template for other imperilled tropical river basins, such as the Mekong and the Congo.

     

Trawling for cephalopods off the Portuguese coast—Fleet dynamics and landings composition

Fleet dynamics was addressed for three cephalopod taxa of commercial interest, the squid Loligo vulgaris, the octopuses Octopus vulgaris and Eledone cirrhosa, and the cuttlefish Sepia officinalis, for 48 trawlers of the fish trawling fleet. Landing profiles (LP) were identified based on the species composition of the landings using hierarchical cluster analysis. Four out of a total of 12 different LP were related to cephalopods and other species associated with them.The effects on the landing proportions of a number of variables, year, season and vessel, are analysed for each of the species studied using generalized linear models (GLM). The factor “vessel”, including an ensemble of technical characteristics as well as the abilities of individual skippers, explained most of the model deviance, strongly reinforcing the existence of a fleet component dedicated to catch cephalopods. However, time also explains much of the variation found in the data.Seasonal alternation between landings of octopodidae and cuttlefish was observed within a small group of old trawlers operating mainly off the south coast, following the abundance cycles of these species. For a larger group of more modern trawlers, operating off the western coast, inter-annual shift between octopus and squid was found, together with a well marked seasonal pattern between the catches of cephalopods and horse mackerel.Spatial patterns of activity were identified using vessel monitoring system (VMS) data available for trawlers in Portugal, demonstrating the existence of cephalopod targeting strategies in Portuguese fish trawling activities.     

First feeding of diploid and triploid yellowtail tetra Astyanax altiparanae: An initial stage for application in laboratory studies

In this study, the aim was to establish a protocol for first feeding of diploid and triploid yellowtail tetra Astyanax altiparanae in laboratory conditions. The fry were fed with five different diets: (i) Artemia franciscana nauplii, (ii) plankton, (iii) dry food, (iv) Artemia franciscana nauplii + plankton, and (v) Artemia nauplii + plankton + dry food. Additionally, the growth and survival rates of diploid and triploid individuals were also evaluated. On day 10, the length of the fish between the treatments differed significantly (p = .0001) and ranged from 4.07 ± 0.06 mm (dry food) to 8.50 ± 0.64 mm (plankton + Artemia). The sizes of the fish increased with time, except for the fish fed with dry food. The survival rates were similar for the fish fed with the four diets and ranged from 80.7 ± 5.4% (dry food + plankton + Artemia to 92.0 ± 1.6% (plankton + Artemia), but differed from the fish fed with dry food (17.7 ± 5.8%, p = .0017). Diploids and triploids did not present differences on day 0 (p = .2252) and on day 10 (p = .4844) when the fish presented 6.77 ± 0.25 mm and 6.54 ± 0.15 mm respectively. Survival of diploids (87.3 ± 5.13%) and triploids (74.67 ± 2.30%) were also similar (p = .0285). These data are innovative and useful for establishing protocols for this species in both academic and applied sciences.     

Dietary organic acids blend alone or in combination with an essential oil on the survival,growth, gut/liver structure and de hemato‐immunological in Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus

This study evaluated the effects of dietary supplementation of organic acids blend (OAB) alone or in combination with essential oil, Lippia origanoides (OAE) for Nile tilapia fed supplemented diets for 30 days. Fish (1.1 ± 0.04 g) were fed control (Control), or OAB 0.5% or OAB 0.5% + essential oil 0.125% (OAE) respectively. At the end of the experiment, samples were collected for de hemato‐immunological, histological analysis of the intestine and liver, as well as microbiology of the intestine. The pH of the diets supplemented with OAB and OAE reduced 0.92 and 0.19 respectively. The growth and FCR were unaffected by the treatments, but survival was significantly higher in the OAB treatment. Fish fed the OAB diet showed reduced concentration of total heterotrophic bacteria and Pseudomonas sp. in the intestine. Increased glucose in fish fed OAB and high number of circulating monocytes in fish fed OAE diet were observed. The anterior intestine of fish fed OAE diet showed larger number of goblet cells and increased villi height. The diet supplemented with OAB, mainly, improved the intestinal health and survival of tilapia juveniles and can be used in juvenile production.     

Changes in the condition index for mangrove oysters (Crassostrea rhizophorae) from Todos os Santos Bay,Salvador, Brazil

The condition index was calculated for two samples of 600 C. rhizophorae taken from Jacuruna farm in September–October 1977 (spawning period) and December 1977–January 1978 (post-spawning period). There was a significant difference (P ≤ 0.05). Over the size range 2.1 to 10.0 cm (height) the condition index ranged from 59.0 ± 16.2 to 71.8 ± 30.5 for the spawning period, but was only 27.1 ± 10.2 to 43.9 ± 33.0 for the post-spawning period. The size class 4.1 to 6.0 cm gave the best commercial yields and was considered more suitable for the shucked oyster than the fresh oyster market.     

Efficacy of furunculosis vaccines in turbot, Scophthalmus maximus (L.): evaluation of immersion, oral and injection delivery

The commercial furunculosis vaccine Aquavac Furovac 5 and an autogenous vaccine, based on the challenge strain, induced immune protection in turbot, Scophthalmus maximus (L.), as shown in challenge tests 120 days post-immunization by injection (relative percentage of survival, RPS = 72-99%). This protective effect lasted for at least 6 months post-immunization at appreciable levels (RPS = 50-52%). Neither the autogenous vaccine nor the commercial vaccine was able to induce significant levels of protection against Aeromonas salmonicida in turbot when administered by immersion. Antibody levels were high or moderate in fish vaccinated by injection with the different vaccines and very low in fish vaccinated by immersion. The field results show that delivering an oral boost after the primary vaccination by injection did not enhance protection of turbot against furunculosis and that water-based (autogenous vaccine) and oil adjuvanted (Alpha Ject 1200) vaccines administered by injection conferred similar levels of protection (RPS > 80%) in turbot.     

Associations between morphometric variables and weight and yields carcass in Pirapitinga Piaractus brachypomus

The objective of this work was to evaluate the association between morphometric variables and carcass characteristics in Pirapitinga. We used a thousand specimens of Pirapitinga with an average weight of 1,200 g, which were stunned, slaughtered, weighed, measured, and processed for morphometric and processing yield analysis, to obtain weights, carcass and fillet yields. Initially, the linearity of the variables was verified. Pearson's simple and partial correlation tests were performed between all metrics. Track analysis was performed considering the weights and yields of carcass and filet as dependent variables and the others as independent variables. Ridge regression models were used to eliminate the effects of multicollinearity among the independent variables. Observations showed that the simple correlations between body weights and yields were superior to the partial ones in terms of magnitude. The length and circumference of the specimens were the measures most linearly associated with weight, carcass weight and fillet with rib weight. As for carcass yield and fillet yield, linear correlation coefficients were low and not significant when associated with body weights. With the path analysis, we could observe significant positive correlations between the morphometric measurements for weight, carcass weight and fillet with rib weight. The standard length, body circumference and body circumference/body height ratio are the most correlated. The latter are the most important variables in the evaluation of body weights in Pirapitinga fish. They can serve as criteria for indirect selection in searching for fish with better carcass characteristics. As for fillet and carcass yields, the morphometric variables have not shown to be efficient for indirect selection.     

Triploid Induction in the Yellowtail Tetra,Astyanax altiparanae,Using Temperature Shock: Tools for Conservation and Aquaculture

Triploidization is an interesting tool to produce sterile fish. In the yellowtail tetra, Astyanax altiparanae, this can be applied for aquaculture and surrogate technologies. In this study, we compared the efficacy of cold (2 C) or heat shock (38 C, 40 C, and 42 C) on triploid induction in the yellowtail tetra. The eggs were treated with cold or heat shock, 2 min postfertilization (30 min in cold shock or 2 min in heat shock). Intact embryos served as the control group. Ploidy status was confirmed by karyotyping, flow cytometry, and nuclear diameter of erythrocytes. The hatching rate decreased after cold shock (12.69 ± 15.76%) and heat shock at 42 C (0.35 ± 0.69%) in comparison with the control group (63.19 ± 16.82%). At 38 C and 40 C, hatching rates (61.29 ± 17.73% and 61.75 ± 22.1%, respectively) were not decreased. Only one triploid arose at 38 C (1/80). At 40 C, a high number of triploids arose (72/78). At 42 C, very few embryos developed into the hatching stage. A large number of haploid individuals arose after cold shock (61/75), with only one triploid. Our results indicate that heat shocking of embryos at 40 C is optimum for triploid production in the yellowtail tetra.