Origins of the freshwater attractant(s) of migrating elvers of the American eel,Anguilla rostrata

Synopsis Origins of the freshwater attractant(s) of migrating elvers of the American eel were investigated by assaying elvers' responses to rinses of plants, animals, and inanimate objects collected from a Rhode Island (U.S.A.) brook with a sizable elver run. Odor rinses were tested in a Y-maze at naturally occurring concentrations against both blank and brook water. Many items were attractive, several were repulsive, and some caused a reduction in elvers' rheotactic behavior, suggesting that elvers respond to a bouquet of odors. The odor of abundant decaying leaf detritus was highly attractive as were odors of the surfaces of aquatic plants, submerged stones, and migrating alewives. Conspecific odor was only weakly attractive. Because unattractive leaves became attractive when cultured with stream water, microorganisms responsible for detrital decomposition and present in/on most stream objects are thought to be the major source of the attractant(s). Decaying detritus and its associated microorganisms are abundant in most freshwater streams, where they often constitute the ecosystem's primary energy source; their odor could serve as an index of environmental suitability for migrating eels.     

Fish community response to the longitudinal environmental gradient in Czech deep-valley reservoirs: Implications for ecological monitoring and management

Ecological quality assessment of non-natural water bodies is, in contrast to natural systems, less developed and requires determining biological indicators that reliably reflect environmental conditions and anthropogenic pressures. This study was motivated to propose fish indicators appropriate for assessment of reservoir ecosystems in central Europe. We analysed changes in water quality, total biomass and the taxonomic, trophic and size composition of fish communities along the longitudinal axes of four elongated, deep-valley reservoirs. Due to high nutrient inputs from their catchments, the reservoirs exhibited pronounced within-system gradients in primary productivity and water transparency. Although fish communities were similar among the reservoirs and dominated by few native species, the community structure and biomass systematically changed along the longitudinal axes of the reservoirs. The biomass and proportion of planktivores/benthivores in the fish community were highest at eutrophic sites near the river inflow and declined substantially towards deep, more oligotrophic sites close to the dam. The biomass and proportion of piscivores significantly increased downstream within the reservoirs alongside improving water quality. At species level, perch Perca fluviatilis and bream Abramis brama responded most sensitively, although in opposite directions, to the longitudinal environmental gradient. The major longitudinal changes in fish community characteristics were found to be consistent between pelagic and benthic habitats. The results of this study suggest that fish communities are appropriate indicators of eutrophication and can be used for ecological quality assessment of non-natural lentic water bodies, such as reservoirs. Moreover, our results underline the necessity to consider within-system gradients in water quality and the fish community when planning sampling programmes for deep-valley reservoirs.     

Exercise,agonistic behaviour and food acquisition in Arctic charr,Salvelinus alpinus

Synopsis Although swimming is energetically costly, a number of studies on salmonid species have demonstrated increased growth rates in fishes forced to swim for prolonged periods at moderate speeds (typically 1–2 body lengths per sec). This suggests that additional energetic costs of swimming are more than met by alternative compensatory gains. The mechanisms underlying such effects are not fully understood. In this paper, we describe an experiment designed to examine one possible mechanism, namely a swimming-induced inhibition of aggression, with consequent beneficial effects on growth. The study used Arctic charr,Salvelinus alpinus, a species for which a positive relationship between exercise and growth has been clearly established. Using direct behavioural observations on small groups, we demonstrate that individuals displaying high levels of aggressive behaviour are able to monopolise access to food and that enforced swimming at a moderate speed (1 body length per sec) reduces the incidence of aggression although not the degree of monopolisation of food shown by aggressive individuals. These results suggest that the enhanced growth rates accompanying enforced swimming may reflect lower energetic costs of reduced aggressive activity rather than improved access to food by subordinates.     

Effects of T3 and rearing temperature on growth and skeletal myosin heavy chain isoform transition during early development in the salmonid Salvelinus alpinus (L.)

Rearing of 1-year-old Arctic charr (Salvelinus alpinus) at 12°C, as well as the administration of 50 or 75 mgT₃/kg feed, accelerated the neonatal to adult fast myosin heavy chain transition, but the effect of temperature was more dramatic than the effect of T₃ administration. The endogenous plasma levels of T₃ in charrs reared at 12°C were higher than those of analogous groups reared at natural temperature, which in the period under study was between 0.5 and 12°C. As in other species, T₃ seemed to play a role in the regulation of the neonatal to adult fast myosin isoform transition by down-regulating the levels of the neonatal and increasing the levels of an adult fast myosin heavy chain. Temperature seemed to accelerate this transition at least, but not only, by inducing an increase in the endogenous levels of T₃ in the Arctic charr.     

Analysis of long-term ecological status of Lake Balaton based on the ALMOBAL phytoplankton database

Lake Balaton (Hungary), one of the largest lakes in Europe, has undergone eutrophication and restoration during the last two decades. The first quantitative phytoplankton records date back to the 1930s, and since that time thousands of data have been published or accumulated in counting protocols or computer sheets. These data provide material for both scientific analyses (e.g. effects of global change) and applications (e.g. estimation of reference state for the Water Framework Directive). The ALMOBAL phytoplankton database was developed to provide computing support for these applications. It stores data in standardized forms, handles synonyms and allows analyses to be conducted on the basis of floral records, numbers or biomass. The analysis includes records of about 3000 phytoplankton samples taken during the past 60 years from two representative basins in Lake Balaton. This article represents the first attempt at historical reconstruction of the ecological status and compares it with changes in trophic state and current water quality. The results indicate that the phytoplankton biomass and community structure found in the early 1960s could be regarded as reference conditions. Statistical analyses support the view that late summer phytoplankton assemblages are the most sensitive indicators of trophic change, and clearly show the eutrophication of the lake that occurred from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s and the restoration during the last decade. An additional advantage is that, since quality estimation is based on relative biomass, the method can be used to reconstruct water quality in cases when counting protocols are available, but some basic data for quantitative estimates are missing.     

Sounds produced by spawning fishes

Synopsis Low frequency sounds are shown to be associated with the spawning of two Caribbean coral reef fishes: the hamlet, Hypoplectrus unicolor (Serranidae) and the striped parrotfish, Scarus iserti (Scaridae). Both fishes produce distinctive sounds while broadcasting gametes in midwater. H. unicolor produces sounds via muscle stimulation of the swimbladder. Fin movements among group spawning S. iserti produce hydrodynamic noise. Although reproductive behaviors of these two species have been previously studied in detail, the association of sounds with mating is new. The mating sounds cannot be easily detected by human hearing underwater but are recordable using a hydrophone. The sounds are distinct and recognizable enough to allow counting and acoustic mapping of mating events in these species.     

DNA疫苗及其在鱼类生产中的应用

近几年来,DNA疫苗以其高效、稳定等特点越来越受到各国研究者的重视,并在鱼类生产上做了很多试验研究,取得了一定的成果。就DNA疫苗的构建、作用原理、佐剂、接种方法、安全性、目前存在的问题及应用前景作一综述。     

鱼类趋化因子的研究进展

趋化因子(Chemokine)是由多种细胞在致病因子刺激后分泌的一类低分子量的细胞因子,它们都具有激活和趋化白细胞的作用。趋化因子从结构上可分为四类:CC型、CXC型、CX3C型和C型;从功能上可分为两种类型:一类主要诱导白细胞到炎症部位;另一类主要是对肌体起免疫监控作用。目前,有关鱼类趋化因子的研究主要集中于CXC型和CC型两类,以及其在非特异性免疫中的作用。