The value of sea urchin,Lytechinus variegatus,egesta consumed by shrimp,Litopenaeus vannamei

Sea urchins produce high‐energy, membrane‐bound fecal pellets that contain residual nutrients and large quantities of microbiota. These egesta are readily consumed by the shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. Egesta of the sea urchin, Lytechinus variegatus, were evaluated as a feed supplement or total replacement for a commercial shrimp diet. Shrimp were stocked at 0.49 g ± 0.06 g initial body weight and housed individually in 2.8‐L tanks in a commercial recirculating zebrafish system. Shrimp were assigned to one of six diets: commercial shrimp feed, reference sea urchin feed, collected dried sea urchin egesta, collected wet sea urchin egesta, half ration of shrimp feed and half collected wet sea urchin egesta, and egesta naturally produced by two sea urchins in polyculture. Equivalent dry matter amounts of each diet were proffered to shrimp in each treatment twice daily, except for those that had complete access to natural egesta excreted by sea urchins in polyculture. Sea urchins were proffered a reference sea urchin feed at 2% body weight daily. After 27 days, shrimp proffered collected dried or wet egesta did not differ significantly in percent weight gain and showed the lowest weight gain. The percent weight gain of shrimp fed the commercial shrimp diet did not differ significantly from that of the shrimp fed half commercial shrimp diet and half egesta. The highest weight gain was recorded for those shrimp that consumed the untouched egesta produced by sea urchins in polyculture. These data suggest that consumed egesta have noteworthy nutritional value and therefore would be beneficial to the culture of extractive species in an integrated multitrophic aquaculture system.     

大花君子兰叶绿体基因组及其特征

采用Illumina MiSeq测序平台对大花君子兰（Clivia miniata）叶片总DNA进行测序，通过组装获得了其叶绿体基因组（cpDNA）全长序列（158 114 bp）。对其cpDNA注释得到135个基因，包含87个蛋白编码基因、40个tRNA基因和8个rRNA基因。采用生物信息学方法对获得的cpDNA进行简单序列重复（SSR）分析和密码子偏好性分析。结果显示：①大花君子兰cpDNA中共有61个SSR位点，其中单核苷酸、二核苷酸、三核苷酸、四核苷酸、五核苷酸和六核苷酸重复数分别为38、9、2、8、3和1个，多数SSR分布在基因间隔区；②大花君子兰cpDNA密码子偏爱以A或U（T）结尾，亮氨酸使用频率最高，半胱氨酸使用频率最低。基于24种植物的cpDNA全长和23种植物的叶绿体ycf2基因序列进行系统发育分析，结果显示大花君子兰与石蒜科植物在同一分支，显示最近的亲缘关系，支持大花君子兰属于石蒜科。基于叶绿体ycf2的系统发育分析结果与基于cpDNA全长的系统发育分析研究结果大部分相同，支持ycf2基因可以代替cpDNA全长用于植物系统发育分析。     

Getting cosy in freshwater: Assumed to be brackish pike are not so brackish after all

Pike (Esox lucius) occupy coastal streams and rivers of the Baltic Sea, where they attain large sizes (>5 kg). These large sizes are perhaps due to the fact that they can tolerate relatively high salinities and can thus forage in the nearby more productive brackish environments. In an attempt to quantify the extent to which pike utilise brackish environments, and to provide some insight into the underlying causes for brackish water migrations, we tagged 30 pike from a western Baltic river with acoustic transmitters and were able to track 21 individuals for 1 year. Based on experienced from local anglers, this population was assumed to be brackish in nature, where individuals underwent freshwater migrations to spawn. Our findings however suggest that the smallest and most active individuals make short exits into brackish waters and do so on rare occasions. Our results further indicate that neither sex nor size is related to activity level. We suggest that these patterns reflect two distinct behaviours—active and passive—and that large pike can be supported by the food availability in the river, without the need to venture into coastal zones, thus defying the conventional view that Baltic pike are all brackish in nature.     

The effects of density and artificial substrate on intensive shrimp Litopenaeus vannamei nursery production

Recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) can be installed indoors, allowing year-round production of tropical animals in nearly any climate. A nursery phase is commonly used in Litopenaeus vannamei production since it allows for enhanced biosecurity and better quantification of animals while reducing space requirements. However, it is unclear whether animal density and inclusion of artificial substrate may improve shrimp performance during the nursery phase. In this experiment, we compared shrimp production parameters in two stocking densities with or without the use of an artificial substrate by creating four treatments: low-density LD; 1500 PL/m⁻³, low-density with substrate LDS, high-density HD; 3000 PL/m⁻³), and high-density with substrate (HDS). The LDS and HDS treatments included 0.46-m² of high-density polyethylene 2.5-cm mesh as a substrate, which increased the tank surface area by 21 %. Each treatment was randomly assigned to four 160-l culture tanks, each with a biofilter. The shrimp had an initial weight of 4 mg and were grown for 50 days. The low-density treatments had significantly higher dissolved oxygen (DO) and pH than the high-density treatments (P ≤ 0.001). Specifically, LDS had the highest DO and pH followed by the LD, HD, and HDS treatments, respectively. High-density treatments had significantly higher NO₂-N levels than low-density treatments during week 2 of the experiment when an unusually high concentration of nitrite was observed. FCR was significantly lower in both low-density treatments than in high-density treatments. At harvest, the total biomass (kg m⁻³) was significantly higher in high-density treatments than in low-density treatments (P ≤ 0.001), and the HDS treatment had a significantly greater biomass output than HD. Producers should consider artificial substrate and higher densities during nursery production to maximize shrimp production; however, the effects on water quality should also be taken into account.     

优良豆科牧草--东方山羊豆的研究与利用

开发新豆科牧草资源不仅是改善饲草料品质，提高草地畜牧业生产力的基础，还可为我国实施退耕还林还草，恢复生态环境建设的战略部署提供草本植物物种。东方山羊豆是自1980年后，在前苏联、北欧等国家得到重视的一种新兴豆科牧草，它具有产量高，植株蛋白质含量高，生态适应性强，草地持续稳定性好的特点。本文综述了国内外对该草种的产量及饲用价值评定，回顾了影响山羊豆草地建植和生长的因素，提出了在我国西北地区开展东方山羊豆研究和利用推广的潜力和前景。     

Spermatophore cryopreservation and artificial insemination of black tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon (Fabricius)

To develop an appropriate cryopreservation protocol for spermatophores of black tiger shrimp, Penaeus monodon, three cryoprotectants (dimethyl sulphoxide (DMSO), methanol (MeOH) and ethylene glycol (EG)) at two concentrations (5% and 10%) were examined. Artificial implantation of spermatophores was also carried out to assess the fertilizing ability of fresh and post‐thaw spermatophores. Spermatophores were collected during consecutive regenerations (15‐day intervals) and assessed for qualitative and quantitative changes and also for fertilizing ability by implantation. The mean fertilization rate for artificial insemination using post‐thaw spermatophore was 79.9±3.7%, lower than the fertilization rates observed for artificial implantation using fresh spermatophore and natural mating. Mean hatch rates for fresh spermatophore, frozen‐thawed spermatophore and natural mating were 88.8±0.6%, 87.8±0.4% and 88.3±0.5%, respectively; and there was no difference among the three groups. The mean fertilization rate of spermatophores collected during the first stripping was higher (90.6±0.6) than during the second stripping (85.7±2.6), but the mean hatch rate was not different between the two strippings. The highest mean sperm viability (79.7±0.4%) was obtained from DMSO (5%), with no survival observed in the 10% MeOH treatment. Spermatophore weight, total sperm count and percentage of abnormal sperm were not different between spermatophores collected at the first and second stripping. This is the first study to report high fertilization and hatch rates from cryopreserved spermatophore using artificial implantation of spermatophore before spawning.     

南美白对虾淡水养殖试验报告

采取人工调兑淡水盐度，定点投喂颗粒饲料，调节水质及病害预防措施，在667m^2淡水池塘中养殖南美白对虾，经107天的饲养管理，共产南美白对虾160．2kg，平均体长达13．5cm/尾，体重20g/尾，成活率达到80．1％，共获利润5732．5元，投入产出比1：2．47。     

Reproductive biology of the female Japanese mantis shrimp Oratosquilla oratoria (Stomatopoda) in relation to changes in the seasonal pattern of larval occurrence in Tokyo Bay, Japan

ABSTRACT:   The reproductive traits and the monthly larval abundance of the mantis shrimp Oratosquilla oratoria were investigated in Tokyo Bay, Japan, in 2002. The goal of the study was to elucidate the cause of changes in the monthly pattern of larval abundance from the 1980s to the 1990s as these changes relate to variation in the stock size of the adult shrimp. Oogenesis was divided into 10 stages by histological observation. The developmental stage of oocytes in an individual's ovary was synchronous, suggesting that almost all the oocytes in an ovary are spawned at the same time. The size at first maturity was estimated to be 7 ≤ body length ( BL ) < 8 cm. Fecundity was expressed as a function of BL , ranging from 19 300 eggs for 8 cm BL to 92 100 eggs for 14 cm BL . Small female shrimps (<10 cm BL ) spawned around August. Most large female shrimps (≥10 cm BL ) spawned around May, and some large female shrimps also spawned until September. Although most large female shrimps spawned in spring, the larval abundance was low before July and high from August onwards. The results suggest that a substantial decrease in the stock size of large individuals causes the low larval abundance before July.