Vertical dynamics and reproductive behaviour of farmed and wild Atlantic cod Gadus morhua

Abstract

MEPS Marine Ecology Progress Series Contact the journal Facebook Twitter RSS Mailing List Subscribe to our mailing list via Mailchimp HomeLatest VolumeAbout the JournalEditorsTheme Sections MEPS 389:233-243 (2009) - DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/meps08156 Vertical dynamics and reproductive behaviour of farmed and wild Atlantic cod Gadus morhua Justin J. Meager1,*, Jon Egil Skjæraasen1, Anders Fernö1,2, Ørjan Karlsen3, Svein Løkkeborg2, Kathrine Michalsen2, Stig Ove Utskot3 1Department of Biology, University of Bergen, 5020 Bergen, Norway 2Institute of Marine Research, 5817 Bergen, Norway 3Institute of Marine Research, Austevoll Research Station, 5932 Storebø, Norway *Email: justin.meager@bio.uib.no ABSTRACT: Rapid development of fish mariculture and efforts to restock depleted populations have raised concerns about the effects on wild populations and the risk of genetic introgression from hybridisation. Reproduction of many marine fish species involves substantial vertical movements, but nothing is known of the vertical dynamics of farmed fish in spawning shoals. We combined laboratory observations and field biotelemetry to examine the depth-related reproductive behaviour and vertical dynamics of individual farmed and wild Atlantic cod Gadus morhua (L). We first tested the prediction that the depth distributions of male and female wild cod differ both in the laboratory and in the field. We then tested the prediction that farmed cod have a shallower depth distribution than wild cod and thus lack the sex-based vertical dynamics of wild cod. In both the laboratory and field, male farmed and wild fish tended to be located deeper than females, and wild fish were deeper than farmed fish. In the field, wild males were near the seafloor, considerably deeper than wild females and farmed fish. Residency on the spawning ground was longer for wild fish, but a substantial proportion (61%) of farmed fish remained for more than 3 d. Our study reinforces the idea that vertical dynamics play a key role in reproduction of an important fisheries species, and demonstrates clear differences in vertical distribution between farmed and wild fish on a spawning ground. The results suggest that escaped farmed cod, and in particular, farmed females, are likely to hybridise with wild cod. KEY WORDS: Aquaculture · Escaped · Gadus morhua · Depth · Mating behaviour · Spawning Full text in pdf format PreviousNextCite this article as: Meager JJ, Skjæraasen JE, Fernö A, Karlsen Ø, Løkkeborg S, Michalsen K, Utskot SO (2009) Vertical dynamics and reproductive behaviour of farmed and wild Atlantic cod Gadus morhua. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 389:233-243. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps08156 Export citation RSS - Facebook - Tweet - linkedIn Cited by Published in MEPS Vol. 389. Online publication date: September 04, 2009 Print ISSN: 0171-8630; Online ISSN: 1616-1599 Copyright © 2009 Inter-Research.