Effect of temperature on
growth and survival of Chirostoma estor estor, Jordan 1879, monitored
using a simple video technique for remote measurement of length and mass of
larval and juvenile fishes
C.A. Martínez-Palacios, E. Barriga Tovar, J.F.
Taylor, G. Ríos Durán, L.G. Ross-2002
Aquaculture, 209(1-4) : 369-377
Abstract:
The growth and survival of white fish (Chirostoma
estor estor) larvae were measured at different temperatures ranging from
16.1 to 34 °C. A single camera video system was used for accurate
measurement of length of larval and juvenile fish, which enabled growth
experiments on delicate animals with minimal handling. Use of a
length/weight relationship then enabled estimation of mass. When applied to C.
estor estor, the error of the system was generally less than 0.5% for
length, but increased to over 1% when the distance of the larva to the grids
increased. The total practical error in estimation of biomass using the
video method was -2.05% for dry weight, with a range from -7.1% to +4.1%.
Over a number of experiments, the recorded mortality due to the measuring
process was less than 1%, representing a dramatic advance on all previous
attempts to work with Chirostoma. This simple method could have wider
utility for fragile larvae such as marine fish.
Larvae were fed ad libitum with Brachionus rubens
rotifers and Artemia franciscana nauplii for 1 month. The results
showed that the optimum temperature for specific growth rates (SGR) was 28
°C, although survival was only 18% at this temperature. The best survival
(53%) was at temperatures of 22 and 25 °C. The best overall temperature for
growth and survival was 25 °C.
(Instituto
de Investigacion Sobre los Recursos Naturales y Ambientales, Universidad
Michoacana de San Nicolas Hidalgo, Michoacan, Morelia, Mexico, e-mail: palacios@zeus.umich.mx)