Mycoplasma contamination in fish cell lines: an evaluation of detection by differential incorporation of 3H-uridine and 14C-uracil

Abstract. Differential incorporation of uridine and uracil was used to assay for mycoplasma contamination in five fish cell lines: bluegill fry (BF-2), chinook salmon embryo (CHSE-214), epithelioma papillosum cyprini (EPC), fathead minnow (FHM) and rainbow trout gonad (RTG-2). The method was not suitable for monitoring BF-2, CHSE-214, FHM, and RTG-2 cell lines because they incorporated uracil. Differential incorporation of uridine and uracil may be applicable for screening EPC cells because only this cell line could distinguish cultures experimentally infected with Mycoplasma orale from cultures known to be free from microbial contaminants.     

An evaluation of potential diets for the culture of postpueruli spiny lobsters Panulirus argus (Palinuridae)

Provision of a suitable feed is paramount for the ongoing success of spiny lobster culture. This study compared and evaluated the performance of seven diets for first instar juvenile spiny lobster Panulirus argus [5–6 mm carapace length (CL)] based on growth rates, survival, and feed conversion ratio. Results demonstrated that a seafood-based juvenile formulation produced the fastest growth rate (3.49% weight gain day⁻¹ and 0.90% CL increase day⁻¹ over a 28-day period). These growth rates were also reflected by a low feed conversion rate (3.04) for this formulated feed. Similar results were also obtained for juveniles fed a frozen seafood diet, however, frozen brine shrimp, Artemia salina (both enriched and un-enriched), frozen enriched mysis shrimp, a dry pellet, and a meal-based juvenile formulation did not produce consistent growth rates. Survival rates ranged between 38% and 85% and demonstrate that juvenile lobsters have better likelihoods of survival in captive culture environments compared to the wild. Although further nutritional refinement is recommended, the results from this research have significant implication for the possible expansion of juvenile spiny lobster growout to a larger scale.     

Examining changes in participation in recreational fisheries in England and Wales

Abstract Inland fisheries in England and Wales have high economic and social values. Managing participation to maximise fishery performance is key to maintaining this status. The capital value of fishing rights for migratory salmonid fisheries is €165 million. Coarse fisheries contribute €1030 million to the economy. The central tenet to increasing participation in recreational salmonid fisheries is that an increase in stock size will result in more anglers accessing the fishery. This was examined for salmon on the rivers Usk and Lune where exploitation restrictions increased the number of salmon available to anglers. On the River Lune, the number of salmon available post‐intervention increased by 66%. There was no significant increase in catch while the number of anglers decreased by 16.3%. On the River Usk, the closure of the net fishery potentially resulted in an additional ～1200 salmon being available. Following closure, there was no significant change in rod catch or in the number of anglers. Increased participation is dependent less upon stock manipulation for coarse fisheries and more upon facilitating the activity. In recent years, urban fishery development programmes have provided improved access to local fishing opportunity. Also, new anglers have been targeted through campaigns such as Get Hooked on Fishing and the Scout Angler Badge.     

2-methylisoborneol implicated as a cause of off-flavour in channel catfish, Ictalums punctatus (Rafinesque), from commercial culture ponds in Mississippi

Abstract. Samples of water, sediment and fish were collected from six commercial channel catfish, Ictalurus punctalus (Rafinesque), ponds from May to October and analysed for muddy-odour producing compounds. Three episodes of off-flavour in the fish occurred in late summer. The episodes were of 2–3 months' duration and correlated with the levels of 2-methylisoborneol in water, sediment and fish. Oscillatoria agardliii was the dominant phytoplankton in ponds with off-flavour fish. Other known muddy odour-producing compounds such as geosmin, 2-isopropyl-3-mcthoxypyrazinc, 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine and 2-isobutyl-6-methoxypyrazinc were not detected in the water sediment or at concentrations greater than 5·0 ng/l.     

Adapting bioenergetic factorial modelling to understand the implications of heat stress on barramundi (Lates calcarifer) growth,feed utilisation and optimal protein and energy requirements – potential strategies for dealing with climate change?

The implications of temperature on bioenergetics for barramundi (Lates calcarifer) were defined in an improved factorial model that encompassed revised parameters accounting for effects over the temperature range of 16–39 °C and size range of 10–3000 g. A revised growth function describing weight gain by barramundi as a function of fish weight and temperature was derived from farm and laboratory data and included a term for a shift in optimal temperature with fish size: Gain (g fish^?1 day^?1) = (K + xT + yT ² + zT³) * (weight)^ax+b. Maintenance energy and protein demand functions were also derived on a similar form, and all three functions combined to form the basis of a factorial model for energy and protein demand. Using this model, optimal iterative feed specifications were defined for a range of fish sizes at temperatures of 25, 30 and 35 °C. A feed demand model was also developed based on the demand for digestible energy (DE) at each of these temperatures. The model shows that at high temperatures (35 °C), there is an increase in digestible protein (DP) to DE demand, and that with increasing size, there is a decrease in the DP to DE demand.     

Methodical studies on digestion in trout. 1. Reliability of digestion coefficients in relation to methods for faeces collection

Two methods of faeces collection were compared when studying digestion in trout (78–200 g individual weight; 12–15°C): (a) Faeces stripped from the lower intestine; (b) faecal pellets filtered continuously from water using an automated faeces collector. This apparatus consisted of a cylindrical tank with a funnel shaped bottom, from which the effluent water was drained over a rotating cloth filter, separating the faecal pellets immediately from water. The digestion coefficients for energy and protein of a commercial feed and an experimental diet were determined applying both methods of faeces collection. Digestion coefficients for protein of the experimentally composed diet were 1–2·3% higher for the filtered faeces than for the stripped faeces (88·6–87·3%). The protein digestion coefficients for the commercial feed were about 5% higher when faeces were sampled by continued filtration. Results obtained with the stripping method averaged 79·5%. The energy digestion coefficients followed a similar trend. It was concluded that the stripping method gives more reliable digestion coefficients.     

Movements and behaviors of swordfish in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans examined using pop‐up satellite archival tags

Swordfish are highly specialized top‐level predators that have been challenging to study. In this paper, data from 31 pop‐up satellite archival tags attached to swordfish from (i) the eastern Pacific, (ii) central Pacific, and (iii) western North Atlantic‐Caribbean were analyzed. Common across locations was a pronounced diel vertical pattern with daytime hours spent primarily below the thermocline and nighttime hours spent in warmer waters, close to the surface. One exception to this pattern was periodic daytime basking events which were most common in cooler waters off California. Maximum daytime depths were significantly correlated with light penetration as measured by the diffuse attenuation coefficient at 490 nm. Temperature did not appear to influence daytime depths, and swordfish tolerated both extremely low temperatures (4°C) and rapid and dramatic temperature changes (>20°C). Temperature did appear to influence the nighttime depths in the Pacific where fish typically remained in the surface mixed layer. In contrast, in the warm tropical Atlantic this was not the case, and nighttime depths were much deeper. In all areas, nighttime depth increased around the full moon. Given the parallels between the vertical movement patterns of swordfish and those of the deep sound scattering layer we suggest that swordfish vertical distribution patterns, especially during daytime, are influenced largely by resource availability. At night, when swordfish are typically targeted by fisheries, both ambient light and temperature influence movements. Understanding vertical movement patterns of swordfish can help evaluate gear vulnerability, improve population assessments, and potentially reduce fisheries bycatch.     

Pectin purified from pomelo (Citrus maxima) peel as a natural hatching agent for fish embryos

Pectin is a biodegradable polysaccharide, and it has been recently applied as a gene delivery, drug delivery, wound healing and tissue engineering agent. In this study, pectin was extracted from pomelo (Citrus maxima) peel and characterized. The extraction recovery of pectin form pomelo peel was 14.5%, and it had 72.56% degree of esterification, 1,245.56 equivalent weight, 7.82% methoxyl and 68.27% anhydrouronic acid contents. Use of pomelo pectin as a hatching enhancing agent for fish embryos and its effect on hatching enzyme 1 (ZHE1) was investigated. The pectin‐exposed zebrafish embryos (100 µg/ml) showed significantly (p < .05) higher hatching rate (96.6%) compared with untreated (control) embryos (66.6%) at 60 hpf. The mRNA expression of ZHE1 was also significantly (p < .05) elevated up to 55.6‐fold in pectin‐exposed embryos at 24 hpf. In situ hybridization results revealed remarkably strong expression of ZHE1 in pectin‐exposed embryos compared with the control group. In addition, considerably larger size of the hatching gland was observed in pectin‐exposed larvae than that of the unexposed larvae group. These results clearly indicate that pectin isolated from pomelo peel has an ability to enhance the hatching process of zebrafish embryos via upregulation of ZHE1.     

Historical spatial baselines in conservation and management of marine resources

Increased knowledge on the spatial distribution of marine resources is crucial for the implementation of a true ecosystem approach to management and the conservation of marine organisms. For exploited fish species characterized by aggregation behaviour during spawning time, the identification and tracking of spawning areas is essential for a correct assessment of their productivity and population abundance. To elucidate this concept, we reconstructed the spatio‐temporal distribution of adult plaice (Pleuronectes platessa, Pleuronectidae) during spawning time along the 20^th century. Historical data reveal that not only the abundance but also the former population richness was much higher than previously estimated and has declined because of protracted over‐exploitation during the last 30 years. We conclude that forecast of stock recovery to former levels of abundance neglecting spatial reorganizations might be over‐optimistic and shaded by a lost memory of the past population richness. These results reinforce the importance of managing exploited marine resources at a greater spatial resolution than has been carried out in the history of fishery management.