PROJECT NUMBER
•
2023-206
PROJECT STATUS:
CURRENT
ORGANISATION:
Blue Economy Cooperative Research Centre Co-Ltd
TAGS
SPECIES
11 results
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2023-006
PROJECT STATUS:
CURRENT
ORGANISATION:
University of Sydney (USYD)
Understanding and mapping the Tasmanian public perception to Atlantic Salmon farming
Project number:
2018-217
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure:
$98,000.00
Principal Investigator:
Andrew Gregson
Organisation:
Salmon Tasmania
Project start/end date:
29 Jun 2019
-
30 Dec 2019
Contact:
FRDC
SPECIES
Sex reversal and sex differentiation in Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
Project number:
2018-121
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure:
$99,326.00
Principal Investigator:
Luis O. Afonso
Organisation:
Deakin University Warrnambool Campus
Project start/end date:
16 Sep 2018
-
30 Aug 2020
Contact:
FRDC
SPECIES
Based on the National Fishing and Aquaculture RDE strategy 2016, our project relates to Strategic Goal 3: Benefits and value from fisheries and aquaculture resources (productivity and profitability) are maximised, and aquaculture production increased.
Priority area: Develop new technologies and systems to improve the efficiency of production methods.
This project is needed because the Australian Atlantic Salmon Industry is lacking basic and applied knowledge that could lead to the development of a reliable, non-steroidal method to produce all-female populations of Atlantic salmon. One of the drivers of this project is the fact that eliminating males from the production cycle (grow-out period), will reduce the effects of precocious sexual maturation, including reduced growth, reduced flesh quality, and susceptibility to diseases. As a consequence of eliminating males from the production cycle is a concomitant increase in overall productivity (biomass produced) and profitability
We will use genetic and morphological techniques to improve our understanding of sex differentiation in Atlantic salmon. This knowledge is needed to inform the exact period that sex reversal treatments with exogenous substances are more effective to produce neo-males. This exact timing can then be used in the trial of next generation non-steroidal substances, ensuring that they have the greatest chance of success. This will be the first time that detailed gene expression and morphological information will be collected throughout the entire period of sexual differentiation.
1. Investigate morphological sex differentiation processes in male and female Atlantic salmon larvae
2. Quantify the expression of several key genes involved in sex differentiation in male and female Atlantic salmon embryo’s and male and female Atlantic salmon larvae (gonadal and estrogenic non-gonadal tissues)
3. Investigate the effects of MDHT treatment on expression of several key genes involved in sex differentiation in female Atlantic salmon larvae (gonadal and estrogenic non-gonadal tissues)
4. Investigate the effects of DMSO on the masculinizing potential of a single MDHT immersion treatment in female Atlantic salmon.
5. Investigate the effects of the aromatase inhibitor letrozole on expression of several key genes involved in sex differentiation in female Atlantic salmon larvae (gonadal and estrogenic non-gonadal tissues)
Final report
ISBN:
978-0-7300-0340-3
Authors:
Luis O.B. Afonso
Morgan S. Brown
Brad S. Evans
Final Report
•
2021-06-01
•
3.14 MB
2018-121-DLD.pdf
The Tasmanian Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) aquaculture industry strives to produce all-female fish, as male Atlantic Salmon are subject to precocious maturation and consequently reduced flesh quality and increased disease susceptibility when reared in high water temperatures. Several fish species, including Atlantic Salmon, can have their natural sex ratio changed by sex reversal, which involves the application of steroid (androgens and estrogens) and non-steroid (aromatase inhibitors) substances (by immersion or inclusion in the diet) during early stages of development, most of the time prior to phenotypic (morphological) sex differentiation. The timing of application of these substances is instrumental for achieving high rates of sex change. All-female populations can be produced by crossing a masculinized female (XX male or neomale) with a normal female (XX female). Therefore, it is important to test the potential of different substances in producing neomales, which then can be crossed with normal females to consistently produce all-female fish. This indirect method leads to the production of individuals that were never exposed to exogenous steroids.
Our studies are indicating that:
1. Based on histology and morphology, sex differentiation in Atlantic Salmon seems to occur by 79 dph.
2. Based on gene expression, three male specific genes are upregulated prior to morphological sex differentiation, whereas in females only one gene is differentially upregulated prior to morphological sex differentiation.
3. Immersion treatment with MDHT and MDHT+DMSO led to masculinization of genetic females to rates between 81 and 87%.
4. Immersion in MDHT led to the upregulation of male specific genes, which occurred 15 days after (dph) the date observed in normal males (34-66 dph) in the sex differentiation study.
1. Based on histology and morphology, sex differentiation in Atlantic Salmon seems to occur by 79 dph.
2. Based on gene expression, three male specific genes are upregulated prior to morphological sex differentiation, whereas in females only one gene is differentially upregulated prior to morphological sex differentiation.
3. Immersion treatment with MDHT and MDHT+DMSO led to masculinization of genetic females to rates between 81 and 87%.
4. Immersion in MDHT led to the upregulation of male specific genes, which occurred 15 days after (dph) the date observed in normal males (34-66 dph) in the sex differentiation study.
The implications of these findings are relevant to the industry and academic/research communities as they demonstrate that is possible to obtain higher rates of masculinization using androgens but not aromatase inhibitors. The higher rates of masculinization will provide more neomales that can be grown to maturity and crossed with normal females to produce all-female populations of Atlantic Salmon. The combination of MDHT + DMSO increased the rate of masculinization (although not significantly different from MDHT alone), and further studies in this area could lead to the optimization of a sex reversal protocol to further increase the rates of masculinization. The sex differentiation and gene expression studies are showing that Atlantic Salmon is a unique species regarding these aspects, and this information needs to be taken into consideration when developing sex reversal protocols.
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2018-119
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED
Development of a hydrodynamic model to investigate near field and regional connectivity around Okehampton Bay
The study aims to satisfy the regulatory requirements of Environmental Licence 10172/2 from the Tasmanian EPA around Tassal’s use of Okehampton Bay for salmonoid aquaculture, particularly the possible fate of material released within Okehampton Bay into the receiving environment. To...
ORGANISATION:
Tassal Group
SPECIES
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2018-104
PROJECT STATUS:
CURRENT
ORGANISATION:
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere Hobart
SPECIES
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2018-103
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED
ORGANISATION:
Mi-Fish Consulting Pty Ltd
SPECIES
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2018-097
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED
Survey of Enterprise-level Biosecurity across the Australian Aquaculture Industry
The Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (the department) commissioned the independent research company Instinct and Reason to conduct a survey aimed at farm owners/managers in the Australian aquaculture industry. The survey aimed to investigate the level of...
ORGANISATION:
Instinct and Reason
Aquaculture-Community Futures: North West Tasmania
Project number:
2018-075
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure:
$172,996.00
Principal Investigator:
Karen A. Alexander
Organisation:
University of Tasmania (UTAS)
Project start/end date:
31 Mar 2019
-
30 Mar 2021
Contact:
FRDC
SPECIES
To secure the future of Australian aquaculture, building and maintaining a sufficient level of support and trust from interested and affected communities is vital. Worldwide, there have been several examples of where aquaculture operations have been threatened because of a lack of societal acceptability. In Australia, a recent example of this has been the environmental non-governmental organisations (eNGOs) campaigns against proposed fish farm operations in Okehampton Bay on Tasmania’s east coast (Murphy-Gregory, 2017). In the Tasmanian context, attitudes toward the commercial exploitation/use of natural resources involve multi-dimensional, often conflicting, values often with a spatial dimension (see Evans, Kirkpatrick & Bridle 2018).
FRDC Project 2017-158 ‘Determinates of socially-supported wild-catch and aquaculture fisheries in Australia’ has revealed that several factors contribute towards achieving community acceptance: the perception that a company offers benefits; that it contributes to the well-being of the region and respects the local way of life; that it listens, responds and exhibits reciprocity; and that relations are based on an enduring regard for each other’s interests. These factors are often based on understanding and contributing towards achieving a certain state or condition of that which is valued by local and regional communities (e.g. a certain level of local employment, or of threatened habitat protection). Indeed, a lack of social acceptance for the aquaculture industry has often resulted in part from their practices being seen to, or in some cases actually, compromising the condition or state of what communities ‘value’ (feel is very important).
This project has been designed to examine the mix of community interests and values, and to identify how the aquaculture industry and regional communities can participate in processes of negotiation, to contribute towards the achievement of desired conditions or states of community values, using NW Tasmania as a case study.
1. Identify what the NW communities and Tasmanian residents value (“community values”) in relation to the NW Tasmanian coastal and marine region
2. Establish which of these values future aquaculture in NW Tasmanian can contribute to (“shared values”)
3. Ascertain community preferences for how salmonid farming in NW Tasmania could contribute to these shared values, and how this should be tracked and benchmarked
5. Determine preferences of NW communities and Tasmanian residents for community-industry engagement, communication and partnership models (social engagement strategies)
Final report
ISBN:
978-1-922352-94-1
Authors:
Karen A. Alexander
Maree Fudge
Emily Ogier
Final Report
•
2022-06-01
•
1.81 MB
2018-075-DLD.pdf
This report discusses a study conducted by the Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies at the University of Tasmania on marine and costal wellbeing and how it can be considered in regional marine and coastal development decision making. The need for this project arose from a desire by selected Tasmanian aquaculture industry members to better understand levels of community acceptability of their operations (or ‘social license to operate’). The study used a mixed methods approach that combined participatory mapping, qualitative and quantitative primary data, and desk-top research to develop this framework. Wellbeing was found to be comprised of three dimensions: material, relational and subjective. The material relates to welfare or standards of living. The relational is about social relations, personal relationships, and access to the resources we need. The subjective is about how we perceive our individual experience of life. Specific marine and coastal places matter to well-being. Considering wellbeing in the decision-making process is challenging because some aspects are difficult to measure.
PROJECT NUMBER
•
2017-215
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED
Storm Bay Biogeochemical Modelling & Information System Supporting sustainable aquaculture expansion in Tasmania
This project delivers a hindcast and near real time Storm Bay Modelling and Information System that is fit for the purpose of simulating water quality and characterising nutrients in Storm Bay from ocean currents, sediment resuspension, river and anthropogenic (including fish farm) inputs. The...
ORGANISATION:
CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere Hobart
SPECIES
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