Importance of broodstock holding temperature on fecundity and egg quality in three groups of photo-manipulated Atlantic cod broodstock

Abstract

We conducted a study to evaluate the effects of holding water temperature on the fecundity and egg quality of photo-manipulated Atlantic cod broodstock. Adult cod Gadus morhua were distributed among several 25-m3 tanks. Three separate photoperiods were used for each group to obtain three spawning per year (in May, July and December). While photoperiod was controlled, the temperature was not controlled and followed the ambient seasonal pattern. Due to the uncontrolled seasonal temperature used, each spawning group experienced different temperatures at a particular gonadal developmental stage. Otherwise, all groups were treated the same. Results showed that the May and July spawning groups released significantly more eggs per kg of fish (four and three times more respectively) than the December spawning group. The egg fertilization success and proportion of normal eggs were also higher in the May and July groups. Possible reason for the difference may be that the May and July groups experienced lower temperatures (4–7°C) during oocyte maturation and ovulation than the December group (7–9°C). Our results show the importance of using lower/natural temperatures during oocyte maturation and ovulation to obtain good quality eggs in photo-manipulated cod broodstock.