Behaviour of upstream migrating adult salmon (Salmo salar L.) in the tailrace channels of hydropeaking hydropower plants

In hydropeaking rivers, flow regulation typically follows demands in electricity consumption. One hundred and twenty one adult salmon were tagged with radio transmitters to study their spawning run migration patterns in hydropeaking conditions. The fish were released in small groups into the rivers Kemijoki and Iijoki, in Finland. Typically, salmon made subsequent up‐ and downstream movements ascending upstream to the tailrace of the power station and then descending again downstream to lower water velocities. The rate of these migration attempts was higher in mid‐summer and at relatively high flows. On an hourly basis, the pattern of migration attempts followed a trend of increasing attempts at dawn and higher discharges and a decreasing trend towards dusk and low flows. It was concluded that day length and discharge were the most important environmental factors, while temperature had less effect on the pattern of migration attempts.     

Targeting a coatomer protein complex-I gene via RNA interference results in effective lethality in the pollen beetle Brassicogethes aeneus

The pollen beetle Brassicogethes aeneus is a serious pest of oilseed rape (Brassica napus) in Europe. Management of this pest has grown difficult due to B. aeneus’s development of resistance to pyrethroid insecticides, as well as the pressure to establish control strategies that minimise the impact on nontarget organisms. RNA interference represents a nucleotide sequence-based, and thus potentially species-specific, approach to agricultural pest control. The present study examined the efficacy of targeting the coatomer gene coatomer subunit alpha (αCOP), via both microinjection and dietary exposure to exogenous complementary dsRNA, on αCOP-silencing and subsequent mortality in B. aeneus. Beetles injected with dsRNA targeting αCOP (at 0.14 µg/mg) showed 88% and 100% mortality at 6 and 10 days post-injection, respectively; where by the same time after dietary exposure, 43%–89% mortality was observed in the 3 µg dsRNA/µL treatment, though the effect was concentration-dependent. Thus, the effect was significant for both delivery routes. In working towards RNA-based management of B. aeneus, future studies should include αCOP as a target of interest.

     

Effects of intra‐ and interspecific competition and hydropeaking on growth of juvenile Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)

The effects of hydropeaking and intra‐ and interspecific competition on the growth performance (growth in length, mass and lipid content) of juvenile Atlantic salmon Salmo salar and brown trout Salmo trutta were studied in six experimental channels (three experiencing hydropeaking and three controls with a stable discharge of water). Changes in the water‐covered area in the hydropeaking channels were small to avoid fish stranding. Each channel was divided into three similar‐sized sections and stocked with either low or high density of Atlantic salmon, or a mix of Atlantic salmon and brown trout, with the density of the latter equalling the high‐density treatment of Atlantic salmon. A marked effect of competition was visible as salmon in the low‐density treatment were significantly larger (27–33%) and had a higher mass (30–38%) than salmon in both the high‐density salmon treatment and the high‐density salmon and trout treatment. Hydropeaking had only minor and insignificant effects on the growth performance: overall final length, mass and body lipid content in the salmon experiencing hydropeaking differed by ?9%, ?7% and +2% compared with controls. Furthermore, there was no indication that the competitive regime influenced hydropeaking effects. The increase in both intra‐ and interspecific competition among the juvenile salmon had a pronounced and significant effect on growth. Our study adds to the growing evidence that energetic consequences of hydropeaking are likely to be small for Atlantic salmon and that stress and mortality associated with stranding represent the main source of population impact.     

Phenolic extractives from the bark of Pinus sylvestris L. and their effects on inflammatory mediators nitric oxide and prostaglandin E2

The anti-inflammatory properties of phenolic pine (Pinus sylvestris L.) bark extract were studied. The pine bark extract was fractionated by liquid-liquid extractions and semipreparative high-performance liquid chromatography to reveal the most potent constituents. The phenolic compositions of three pine bark samples obtained, a crude extract, a chloroform fraction, and a semipreparative fraction, were analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography with UV diode array detection and/or electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. In addition, eight compounds were isolated and identified by NMR and MS techniques. In total 28 phenolic compounds were identified. The effects of the three pine bark samples on the synthesis of two proinflammatory mediators, nitric oxide and prostaglandin E(2), were measured. It was shown that pine bark contains compounds that inhibit the production of these proinflammatory mediators.     

Cryptosporidium parvum Caused a Large Outbreak Linked to Frisée Salad in Finland, 2012

Over 250 individuals fell ill in five outbreaks caused by Cryptosporidium parvum in Finland, October–November 2012. The cases were connected by lunch meals at restaurants in four different cities. In two outbreaks, the same C. parvumIIdA17G1 subtype was found in patients’ stool samples which supports a single source of infection. Frisée salad was the only common food item served at the restaurants, and consumption of lunch salad containing the frisée salad was associated with the illness. Lunch customers who responded that they had eaten lunch salad were three times more likely to have become ill than those who had not answered whether they had eaten the salad or not (RR 2.66; 95% Cl 1.02–6.9, P‐value <0.01). Cryptosporidiosis should be considered as a causal agent in long‐lasting watery diarrhoea combined with abdominal cramps, and clinical samples should be tested for Cryptosporidium at the same time bacteria and viruses are tested. Measures to prevent contamination of ‘ready‐to‐eat vegetables’ with Cryptosporidium oocysts and methods to test frozen food samples should be developed.     

Landscape history of a calcareous (alvar) grassland in Hanila,western Estonia,during the last three hundred years

The landscape history of the largest calcareous seminatural alvar site (ca. 700 ha) in Estonia, is described with the help of a historical map from 1705 and aerial photographs from 1951, and recent vegetation mapping from 1994–1996. The seminatural, species rich alvar grasslands originate and are maintained by grazing of domestic animals. Three hundred years ago the area was mainly open grassland with sparse shrubs and some fields. Forty years ago the vegetation pattern was similar, with some smaller forests and forest clear-cut areas present. Now, since grazing has ceased for ca. 40 years, only 30% of the area remains as open grassland and 70% as forest. Identification of clusters of field layer vegetation using the program TABORD resulted in 8 clusters, which agreed with the empirically determined community types. The field layer within the young pine forest (up to 20 year old pines) is similar to the open alvar grassland. In older forests, the field layer has already changed. There were no phytosociological differences found between ancient grasslands and grasslands on former arable fields or forest clear-cut areas. Decrease in species richness, compared to open grassland, was most drastic in forests of age 20–40 years where the canopy was most closed. Forests have spread more extensively in areas with deeper soil. The continuation of traditional management (grazing and tree cutting) in alvar grasslands is urgently needed in order to keep seminatural alvar grasslands open. The possibility to restore open grasslands remains as long as there is a pool of grassland species available, especially in younger forests.     

Are environmental conditions in Finnish streams limiting to early life-history survival in the nonnative rainbow trout?

The nonnative rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss has been an unsuccessful invader in North European streams, although it has been widely introduced. Here we studied whether early life history stages (egg incubation and hatching, first overwintering) act as filters for the establishment of hatchery rainbow trout. Survival of hatched alevins was approximately 80%, whereas only 47% of the embryos survived. However, the latter value was impacted by the high number of unfertilized eggs. Correlation coefficients with embryo survival rate and environmental variables (pH and temperature) were statistically insignificant. In the overwintering experiments, the survival of rainbow trout was 93%. The growth was generally slowed during the winter, but in the spring the growth of rainbow trout exceeded that of the native brown trout. Our data demonstrated that the survival and growth of rainbow trout during early life-history stages were relatively high and comparable to those of the native brown trout. Based on the variables considered in our study, our results suggest that environmental conditions during early life-history stages are not detrimental for rainbow trout in the study streams.     

Competition between hatchery‐raised and wild brown trout Salmo trutta in enclosures – do hatchery releases have negative effects on wild populations?

Abstract –  We compared the growth and prey consumption of juvenile hatchery and wild brown trout of similar genetic origin in 12 wire mesh cages in a natural river in North-Eastern Finland. Wild trout started feeding shortly after the start of the experiment, and clearly earlier than novel hatchery trout, but ate less in the presence of hatchery trout. When accompanied with wild trout, novel hatchery trout started to feed earlier, consumed more live prey, and lost less weight than when in allopatry. Hatchery trout grew more slowly than wild trout. To our knowledge, this is the first study to show that hatchery trout benefit from the presence of wild, experienced trout in a complex semi-natural environment. However, our results also indicate that the benefits to hatchery fish are not transferred to wild fish, and ultimately that care should be exercised in management actions when using hatchery trout to supplement wild populations. On the other hand survival potential of the novel hatchery brown trout could be better in the wild when also undomesticated trout are present.     

Nitrogen and Phosphorus Flows in the Finnish Agricultural and Forest Sectors, 1910–2000

An assessment of the environmental quality of sediments at several locations of the Ría de Pontevedra (NW of Spain) was performed by integrating toxicity data obtained from multiespecies bioassays, chemical data from analysis of mussels and sediment, and physical–chemical parameters of the sampled sites. Subsequently, a toxicity identification evaluation (TIE) method intended for characterization and identification of the toxic agents was applied to the most polluted location by using the Paracentrotus lividus sea urchin bioassay. Both metals and organic compounds seem to be the causative agents of toxicity in elutriates of the studied sediment. Finally, multivariate statistics were applied for a better interpretation of results. A factor analysis was developed to establish the relationship among variables and to derive local sediment quality guidelines (SQG) by linking chemical contamination to biological effects. When multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis were performed to group the locations according to either the chemistry or toxicity data, P3-site was always clearly broken up the others. The different approaches all supported the same conclusion: site P3 can be considered highly contaminated by both trace metals and PAHs resulting in high toxicity for all the tested species.