45,290 results

Aquatic disease preparedness assessment

Project number: 1995-087
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $12,418.00
Principal Investigator: Mark S. Crane
Organisation: CSIRO Australian Animal Health Laboratory
Project start/end date: 20 Nov 1995 - 22 Jun 1998
Contact:
FRDC

Objectives

1. To assess the current fish disease legislation in each state, territory and New Zealand
2. To recommend improvements in the current legislation and lines of command in the event of a serious fish disease outbreak
3. To determine the requirement for chemicals/vaccines for use during a fish disease outbreak

Final report

ISBN: 0-643-06292-0
Author: Mark S. Crane and Grant T. Rawlin
Final Report • 1997-10-22 • 1.45 MB
1995-087-DLD.pdf

Summary

Prior to the initiation of this project, it was recognised that while State/Territory, as well as Commonwealth, legislation is well-developed for the management of traditional stock animal diseases, legislation has not addressed adequately issues concerning aquatic animal diseases and their control. Thus animal health policy makers established a working party to assess the effectiveness of State/Territory aquatic animal disease legislation in the face of hypothetical, severe fisheries disease outbreaks in public waters, aquaculture sites, in finfish and in aquatic invertebrates.

Accordingly, the Working Party visited each State/Territory to discuss with those officials responsible for managing aquatic animal disease outbreaks, the current status of State legislation, whether the legislation is appropriate and whether the State has adequate resources and legislative support to manage effectively aquatic animal disease emergencies. In this way the strengths and weaknesses of each State/Territory with regard to aquatic animal disease preparedness were identified for further consideration by the local authorities. Over the past two years significant progress on aquatic animal health policy development at the Commonwealth and State/Territory levels has been made and is outlined in this report.

Major outcomes of the project include a significant raising of the profile of aquatic animal disease. At both State/Territory and Commonwealth levels the issue of aquatic animal disease, even in the face of the emergence of newer fisheries industries and a growth in fisheries production, had attracted relatively little attention and hence few resources. During the course of the project, there have been interaction with other projects and activities, coordinated by the Department of Primary Industries and Energy, which has had a synergistic effect on the progress of the issue. Recently, there has been very significant progress on aquatic animal health policy development at State/Territory and Commonwealth Government levels.

In the majority of States/Territories, either new or revised legislation has been enacted, is currently being enacted or current legislation is being reviewed to determine whether revised/new legislation is required. Thus, most of the States/Territories have addressed, or are addressing, the legislative issue.

In addition to ensuring appropriate legislation is in place, each State/Territory is responsible for ensuring the legislation is invoked as needed and effective management of aquatic animal disease emergencies is undertaken. Regardless of the scale of the incident the State/Territory should be notified, and should then make an assessment of appropriate action, ensuring that such action is in accordance with national policy.

Management of an aquatic animal disease emergency will require a collaborative approach and will, primarily, involve expertise in aquatic animal biology and aquaculture systems which would normally reside in State Departments of Fisheries or the equivalent, as well as expertise in animal diseases and epizootiology normally available from State Departments of Agriculture or the equivalent. In some cases, this expertise resides within one department (e.g. Departments of Primary Industries and Fisheries) and coordination of the response presents little difficulty. In other cases, the expertise is not centralised and coordination of the response becomes a more complex issue.

A major achievement, clearly evident, was the bringing together of the principal decision makers required in the event of an aquatic animal disease emergency. In some States/Territories these meetings represented the first instance in which this had occurred for the purposes of aquatic animal disease emergency contingency planning. Hence, together with the respective roles and responsibilities, important linkages were immediately put in place which later formed the basis for development of an action plan. In each State/Territory, a theoretical scenario, an aquatic animal disease emergency relevant to the particular State/Territory, was presented and worked through to its conclusion. This illustrated the resources, responsibilities and roles required for effective management of the emergency.

Environment

Collaborative investigation on the usage and stock assessment of bait fishes in southern and eastern Australian waters, with special reference to pilchards (Sardinops sagax neopilchardus); extension into Qld and NSW

Project number: 1995-043
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $275,958.14
Principal Investigator: Jonathan Staunton-Smith
Organisation: Department of Primary Industries (QLD)
Project start/end date: 16 Aug 1995 - 30 Jun 2001
Contact:
FRDC

Objectives

1. Identify the main clupeoid species accessible in South-East Queensland and experimentally determine the seasonal abundance of these species.
2. Define size and age structure and examine the reproductive cycle of the major small pelagic species present in South-East Queensland.
3. Estimate egg densities and spawning biomass indices of the small pelagic clupeoid species present in South-East Queensland waters.
4. Examine methods of estimating potential fishery yields for a limited purse seine fishery in South-East Queensland.
5. Examine the species composition from experimental purse seining in South-East Queensland and comment on areas of possible conflict with other users.
6. Examine the potential impact of developing and existing purse seine fisheries on predator species.

Final report

Completion of an analysis of stock structure of orange roughy, based on otolith chemical composition

Project number: 1996-111
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $86,605.00
Principal Investigator: Ronald E. Thresher
Organisation: CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere Hobart
Project start/end date: 8 Aug 1996 - 11 Aug 1999
Contact:
FRDC

Objectives

1. To complete a statistically valid evaluation of the stock structure of orange roughy in southern Australia, based on regional difference in otolith composition, by increasing sample sizes and coverage beyod that undertaken in a pilot study
2. To provide the results of analysis to industry, SETMAC and AFMA, for incorporation in management plans for the orange roughy fishery
3. To asses the utility of the otolith-based technique for other deepwater fished species such as oreo dories

Final report

Environment
Environment
PROJECT NUMBER • 1998-153
PROJECT STATUS:
COMPLETED

Mother-of-pearl (Pinctada maxima) shell: stock evaluation for management and future harvesting in Western Australia

The West Australian Pearling industry is one of Australia’s most valuable aquaculture industries, currently generating around $120 - $160 million annually. The majority of pearl shell used to culture pearls come from the pearling beds in the inshore waters near Broome. The fishery for...
ORGANISATION:
Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) WA

A comparison of otolith microchemistry and genetic techniques for evaluation of stock structure of the jackass morwong Nemadactylus macropterus

Project number: 1991-032
Project Status:
Completed
Budget expenditure: $108,560.00
Principal Investigator: Ronald E. Thresher
Organisation: CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere Cleveland
Project start/end date: 2 Oct 1991 - 1 Oct 1993
Contact:
FRDC

Objectives

1. Compare the stock structure of Jackass morwong in Aust waters as indicated by 4 techniques.
2. Determine the number of Aust stocks & distribution, & if Jackass morwong in Aust & NZ coastal waters are parts of the same stock

Final report

Author: Ron Thresher Robert Ward
Final Report • 1993-10-01 • 2.83 MB
1991-032-DLD.pdf

Summary

Four different techniques for determining the stock structure of a marine fish species were compared, using as a subject the jackass morwong. The four techniques examined were allozyme analysis, mitochondrial DNA analysis and two techniques based on measuring the composition of otoliths ('ear stones') - electron probe microanalysis and proton probe microanalysis, each of which measures the concentrations of different sets of elements. The comparison was based on all four techniques being applied to the same samples, obtained from 14 sites distributed geographically from Perth to NZ.

The principal result was that both genetic techniques distinguished between NZ and Australian samples, indicating strongly at least two genetically distinct stocks. The otolith analysis, however, suggested much greater structuring of the Australian samples, and suggests perhaps four stocks in Australian waters: off NSW and Victoria, off southern Tasmania, in the Great Australian Bight, and off Western Australia. There appears to be considerable mixing of individuals among sites, however, at least some of which appears to be the result of large scale seasonal movements of stocks. Otolith analysis could not separate the southern Tasmanian and NZ samples, which could be either because the environments in which the fish develop are similar in the two areas or because they are the same stock. Although the genetic analysis does not separate the southern Tasmanian sample (Maatsuyker) from other Australian sites, in practice sample size for genetic analysis of this site is too small for an effective comparison and, therefore, the genetic affinities of the SW Tasmanian and NZ stocks are not yet clear.

Environment
View Filter

Species

Organisation