Michigan’s rivers and lakes were once cold enough that fish were protected from some infection-causing parasites. As the Great Lakes ecosystem warms, a Michigan State University researcher is investigating new pathogens that may become relevant to the fish that live here.
Tag: fish
Plenty More Fish in the Sea? Environmental Protections Account for Around 10 Percent of Fish on Coral Reefs
New research from the University of Sydney, WCS, and partners shows that international conservation efforts account for approximately 10 percent of fish on coral reefs.
Lake Erie walleye growth is driven by parents’ size, experience
Parent size and the conditions in which actively spawning adults lived are the most influential factors affecting growth of Lake Erie walleye, a new study has found.
Forecasting the Future of the Arctic
When the Danish bulk carrier Nordic Orion set sail on Sept. 17, 2013, from Vancouver, British Columbia, on a journey to Finland, it set a course for a groundbreaking journey. Rather than turn south to pass through the Panama Canal, it headed north to traverse the Northwest Passage, a winding sea route through the archipelago off Canada’s north and east coasts.
Protecting fish doesn’t have to mean neglecting people, study concludes
With fish stocks declining globally, more than 190 countries recently made a commitment to protect about a third of the world’s oceans within “Marine Protected Areas,” or MPAs by the year 2030.
Upcycling fish scales for water pollution control and encryption
Physicists from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed a novel method of repurposing fish scale waste to act as a bio-adsorbant to effectively remove the pollutant Rhodamine B from water, and a material for information encryption.
Even very low levels of pesticide exposure can affect fish for generations, study finds
Fish exposed to some pesticides at extremely low concentrations for a brief period of time can demonstrate lasting behavioral changes, with the impact extending to offspring that were never exposed firsthand, a recent study found.
RUDN Biologist Improved Carp Growth With Lactic Acid
RUDN University biologist and colleagues from Iran found that adding lactic acid to carp feed improves the growth and health of the fish. The authors selected the optimal concentration of the feed additive. It will help improve the quality of fish products.
RUDN Biologist Proposed Cheap Way to Protect Delicious Fish from Diseases
RUDN University biologists and colleagues from Egypt and Saudi Arabia were the first to study the effect of nanoparticles of the natural polymer chitosan on the fish’s health in aquaculture. It turned out that chitosan nanogel increases the resistance to a dangerous yeast by 22%. It increases the productivity of fisheries.
Explosion in fish biodiversity due to genetic recycling
Scientists show the extraordinary diversity of cichlid fish in Africa’s Lake Victoria was made possible by ‘genetic recycling’ – repeated cycles of new species appearing and rapidly adapting to different roles in the ecosystem.
Fish reveal cause of altered human facial development
Some substances in medicines, household items and the environment are known to affect prenatal child development.
Watch how hammerhead sharks get their hammer
The first-ever look at hammerhead shark development shows how they develop their hammer in stunning detail.
How fish play a critical role in the oceanic carbon cycle
Three researchers from the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science are conducting experiments to better determine the important role of fish play in the oceanic carbon cycle, studying everything from how much carbonate fish produce to the path of the minerals in the water column.
Fall snow levels can predict a season’s total snowpack in some western states
Research led by the University of Washington found that, in some western states, the amount of snow already on the ground by the end of December is a good predictor of how much total snow that area will get.
Hormone alters electric fish’s signal-canceling trick
New research shows that the hormone testosterone — which naturally triggers male electric fish to elongate the electric pulses they send out during the breeding season — also alters a system in the fish’s brain that enables the fish to ignore its own electric signals.
Boom! Detecting Gregarious Goliath Groupers Using Their Low-frequency Pulse Sounds
From growls to booms, whales, fish and crustaceans all produce sounds. Selecting the gregarious Goliath grouper, researchers deployed a novel automated detector and localization model to find underwater marine organisms using their low-frequency pulse sounds.
In a first, researchers image adaptive immune systems at work in fish
A new study from researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison offers a first-of-its-kind visual of a non-mammal species’ adaptive immune system in action. The advance holds potential implications for a range of scientific aims, from improving wildlife vaccines to better understanding fundamental disease processes and possibly the evolution of adaptive immunity itself.
Most effective ways of foraging can attract predators, scientists find
Animals using the most of efficient methods of searching for resources may well pay with their lives, scientists at the University of Bristol have discovered.
Sea temperatures control the distributions of European marine fish
An analysis extending from southern Portugal to northern Norway highlights the importance of temperature in determining where fish species are found.
Why are muskies the fish of 10,000 casts? Illinois study explains
In a new study, University of Illinois researchers got into the minds of muskies to learn what personality traits make the fish more likely to strike. In the process, they learned valuable lessons that could help conserve the important aquatic predators.
Fish sensory organ key to improving navigational skills of underwater robots
Scientists, led by University of Bristol, have been studying a fish sensory organ to understand cues for collective behaviour which could be employed on underwater robots.
There’s something fishy about flake sold in South Australia
It is a popular takeaway choice at fish and chip shops, but new research has revealed threatened species of shark are being sold as flake at some outlets across South Australia. The University of Adelaide study is the first of its kind to examine flake fillets sold at South Australian fish and chip shops.
FAU Study Finds Low Salinity Can Work to Culture Popular Florida Pompano Fish
Less than 10 aquaculture farms in the U.S. have been successful in commercially raising and distributing the popular Florida pompano fish. A new study has determined the optimal salinity required to culture fingerlings (juvenile fish) from hatch to weaning under on-farm conditions. Researchers have shown it’s possible to grow this warm water marine species in salinities a low as 10 parts per thousand, which makes it more economic and easier for producers far from the coast to attempt Florida pompano commercial growth.
Scientists Land $3 Million NSF Grant to Empower Local Coral Reef Monitoring Efforts
Although communities care deeply about the fate of coral reefs, they often lack the scientific tools to document changes in the local reefs on which they rely. A new project will help to empower community members already interested in coral reef health with the tools needed to document changes in these systems. Importantly, findings from the research will inform management of ecosystems.
Grass puffer fish communicate with each other using a non-toxic version of their deadly toxin
A delicacy in Japanese cuisine, puffer fish (fugu) also contain a lethal toxin.
Say Goodbye to Fish Vaccine Injection with “FLAVO INNOVAC” Nano Vaccine for Immersion : The Effective Solution for Prevention of Bacterial Gills Diseases in Fish caused by Flavobacterium spp.
A lecturer and his research team from Faculty of Veterinary Science, Chulalongkorn University, have developed “FLAVO INNOVAC” nanovaccine for the prevention of bacterial gills diseases in freshwater fish species such as Tilapia and freshwater Asian sea bass. This nanovaccine is an effective solution that reduces the risk of death from diseases and the limitations of vaccine injections.
Drones show potential to improve salmon nest counts
Struggling salmon populations could get some help from the sky. A Washington State University study showed that drone photography of the Wenatchee River during spawning season can be effective in estimating the number of rocky hollows salmon create to lay their eggs, also called “redds.”
Ecological tipping point: 5+ El Niño events per century controls coastal biotic communities
Along with implications for the future, the findings illuminate important moments in our past, including human migration into the Americas, the variable human use of coastal and interior habitats and the extinction of the flightless duck Chendytes.
Research links red meat intake, gut microbiome, and cardiovascular disease in older adults
A new study shows older adults who ate about a serving of meat daily had a 22 percent higher risk of cardiovascular disease than those who didn’t eat meat, and identifies biologic pathways that help explain the risk. Higher risk and links to gut bacteria were found for red meat, not poultry, eggs, or fish.
Scientists use robots to reveal how predatory fish cope with unpredictable prey
Scientists at the University of Bristol have demonstrated how predators overcome their preys’ erratic behaviour by adapting their own during the hunt.
Artificial Intelligence Analyzes Gut Microbiota of Fish to Detect Waters Compromised by Climate Change
Article title: Gut microbiota of wild fish as reporters of compromised aquatic environments sleuthed through machine learning Authors: John W. Turner Jr., Xi Cheng, Nilanjana Saferin, Ji-Youn Yeo, Tao Yang Bina Joe From the authors: “Overall, this study represents the…
Pets or threats? Goldfish might be harmful to biodiversity
A new study has highlighted the potential threat of pet fish to biodiversity.
WVU researchers explore invasive carp control methods
As invasive carp continue to pose ecological and economic threats to the Upper Mississippi River Basin, researchers at West Virginia University hope to uncover ways to minimize the species’ expansion.
One water bucket to find them all: Detecting fish, mammals, and birds from a single sample
In times of exacerbating biodiversity loss, reliable data on species occurrence are essential, in order for prompt and adequate conservation actions to be initiated.
Fish Friends Help In A Crisis
To better understand how familiarity impacts social fishes, a group of research scientists studied this idea using schooling coral reef fish
New program to speed salmon breeding
Breeding Insight, a new program funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture through Cornell University, will share latest tools with breeders in the U.S.
New, Tiny Battery Powers Big Insight into Fish Passage for Hydropower
PNNL scientists developed a tiny battery and tag to track younger, smaller species, to evaluate behavior and estimate survival during downstream migration.
New invasive fish discovered, threatening waters of southern United States
The discovery of the Lowland Cichlid (Herichthys carpintis) spells bad news for natural-resource managers and conservationists already contending with the Rio Grande Cichlid, especially in Louisiana.
Corals Carefully Organize Proteins to Form Rock-Hard Skeletons
Charles Darwin, the British naturalist who championed the theory of evolution, noted that corals form far-reaching structures, largely made of limestone, that surround tropical islands. He didn’t know how they performed this feat. Now, Rutgers scientists have shown that coral structures consist of a biomineral containing a highly organized organic mix of proteins that resembles what is in our bones. Their study, published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, shows for the first time that several proteins are organized spatially – a process that’s critical to forming a rock-hard coral skeleton.
Overfishing of Atlantic Cod Likely Did Not Cause Genetic Changes
Overfishing likely did not cause the Atlantic cod, an iconic species, to evolve genetically and mature earlier, according to a study led by Rutgers University and the University of Oslo – the first of its kind – with major implications for ocean conservation.
Controlling Sloshing Motions in Sea-Based Fish Farming Cages Improves Fish Welfare
Sea-based fish farming systems using net pens are hard on the environment and fish. A closed cage can improve fish welfare, but seawater must be continuously circulated through the cage. However, waves can cause the water to slosh inside the cage, creating violent motions and endangering the cage and fish. A study using a scale-model containment system is reported in Physics of Fluids and shows why violent sloshing motions arise and how to minimize them.
Fishes Contribute Roughly 1.65 Billion Tons of Carbon in Feces and Other Matter Annually
Scientists have little understanding of the role fishes play in the global carbon cycle linked to climate change, but a Rutgers-led study found that carbon in feces, respiration and other excretions from fishes – roughly 1.65 billion tons annually – make up about 16 percent of the total carbon that sinks below the ocean’s upper layers.
High CO2 to slow tropical fish move to cooler waters
Under increasing global warming, tropical fish are escaping warmer seas by extending their habitat ranges towards more temperate waters. But a new study shows that the ocean acidification predicted under continuing high CO2 emissions may make cooler, temperate waters less welcoming.
New clues emerge in how early tetrapods learned to live — and eat — on land
New research out of the University of Chicago has found evidence that the lobe-finned fish species Tiktaalik roseae was capable of both biting and suction during feeding, similar to modern-day gars. These results provide evidence that bite-based feeding originally evolved in aquatic species and was later adapted for use on land.
Nuclear War Could Trigger Big El Niño and Decrease Seafood
A nuclear war could trigger an unprecedented El Niño-like warming episode in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, slashing algal populations by 40 percent and likely lowering the fish catch, according to a Rutgers-led study. The research, published in the journal Communications Earth & Environment, shows that turning to the oceans for food if land-based farming fails after a nuclear war is unlikely to be a successful strategy – at least in the equatorial Pacific.
Fish sex organs boosted under high-CO2
Research from the University of Adelaide has found that some species of fish will have higher reproductive capacity because of larger sex organs, under the more acidic oceans of the future.
How to Identify Heat-Stressed Corals
Researchers have found a novel way to identify heat-stressed corals, which could help scientists pinpoint the coral species that need protection from warming ocean waters linked to climate change, according to a Rutgers-led study.
COVID-19 Pandemic had Big Impact on Commercial Fishing in Northeast
With restaurants and supply chains disrupted due to the global coronavirus pandemic, two-fifths of commercial fishermen surveyed from Maine through North Carolina did not go fishing earlier this year, according to a Rutgers study that also documented their resilience and adaptation. Of those who kept fishing, nearly all reported a decline in income compared with previous years, according to the survey of 258 fishers in the Northeast published in the journal PLOS ONE.
Planning Ahead Protects Fish and Fisheries
Conservation of fish and other marine life migrating from warming ocean waters will be more effective and also protect commercial fisheries if plans are made now to cope with climate change, according to a Rutgers-led study in the journal Science Advances.
Community conservation reserves protect fish diversity in tropical rivers
A collaboration between researchers from Cornell University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison has found that small, community-based reserves in Thailand’s Salween River Basin are serving as critical refuges for fish diversity in a region whose subsistence fisheries have suffered from decades of overharvesting.