Abstract
The moon jellyfish (Aurelia sp.1) is thought to be a nuisance for the sea cucumber aquaculture, which commonly occur in the sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) culture ponds of the Yellow Sea, China. To develop an appropriate method to control Aurelia sp.1 blooms, the toxic effects of tea saponin on Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae and polyps were tested in laboratory experiments. Our results revealed that tea saponin caused significant morphological changes, behavioral abnormality and mortality in Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae and polyps in 24 h and 48 h exposure experiments. The 24 h and 48 h median lethal concentrations (LC50) values of tea saponin for Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae were 1.9 and 1.1 mg L-1 respectively, while the LC50 value for Aurelia sp.1 polyps was 0.4 mg L-1 after 24h and 48 h of exposure to tea saponin. Comparison with literature results of tea saponin on A. japonicus indicates that the resistance of A. japonicus to tea saponin is 12–18 times greater than that of Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae. Therefore, the appropriate tea saponin dosage for the control of Aurelia sp.1 should be paid enough attention in order to minimize possible damage for sea cucumber. We suggest that the recommended level of tea saponin to eradicate Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae and polyps in sea cucumber culture ponds be lower than 1.35 mg L-1.
Highlights
The moon jellyfish Aurelia spp. (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa) are the most common scyphozoan species, and have a wide geographic distribution in coastal waters [1]
We suggest that the recommended level of tea saponin to eradicate Aurelia sp.1 ephyrae and polyps in sea cucumber culture ponds be lower than 1.35 mg L-1
There were no specific permissions for catching the moon jellyfish Aurelia sp.1 in coastal waters of Rongcheng because it is thought to be a nuisance in Chinese Seas
Summary
The moon jellyfish Aurelia spp. (Cnidaria: Scyphozoa) are the most common scyphozoan species, and have a wide geographic distribution in coastal waters [1]. Global phylogenetic studies reveal at least 13 cryptic species in the genus Aurelia, and Aurelia sp. occurs in the major warm-temperate regions including China, Japan, Korea, Australia and California [2,3,4]. The Aurelia sp. blooms found in the coastal waters of China, Japan, and Korea have negatively affected coastal power plant operations, local fisheries and tourism [3, 5,6]. High densities of Aurelia sp. have occurred in sea cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) culture ponds located on the coasts of the Yellow Sea, China, and are thought to be a nuisance to the sea cucumber [7]. A. aurita blooms have been observed to cause severe damage to the aquaculture industry [8,9,10,11].
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