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Photoperiod manipulation for the reproductive management of captive wolffish populations: Anarhichas minor and A. lupus

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Abstract

This study provides new and practical information to implement the use of photoperiodic manipulation for the control of the sexual maturation of Canadian 6+ Atlantic wolffish (Anarhichas lupus) and 3+ first-time spawners spotted wolffish (Anarhichas minor) from Canadian and Norwegian populations. Wolffish reproductive cycle (gametogenesis and oocyte maturation and spermiation) was monitored for 23 consecutive months. Control groups were held under a 12-month simulated natural photoperiod and treatment groups under an 8-month compressed photoperiod. Plasma sex steroid concentrations (estradiol-17β and 11-ketotestosterone), oocyte diameter growth, and milt production were assessed monthly. For all groups under study, fish subjected to the compressed photoperiod spawned 2–6 months earlier than the controls. Complete out-of-shift cycle was not achieved based on the completion of two reproduction cycles, and this is briefly discussed. Photoperiod treatment induced temporal shifts in sex steroid profiles, which are the likely mediators of altered timing of ovulation/final maturation. Photoperiod has a strong influence on the timing of wolffish maturation and could be used as an efficient and inexpensive tool to secure wolffish reproduction operations (year-round supply of egg and milt and/or timing with optimal temperature regimes).

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Notes

  1. According to data from Department of Fisheries and Oceans, Maurice Lamontagne Institute, Mont-Joli, QC, Canada located on the south coast of the Saint-Lawrence Estuary 48° 35′ 0″ N/68° 11′ 0″ W.

  2. According to data from Mérinov Inc., Grande-Rivière, QC, Canada located on the North coast of Baie-des-Chaleurs 48° 23′ 0″ N/64° 30′ 0″ W.

  3. Now Mérinov Inc. (https://www.merinov.ca/fr/).

  4. Ambient natural seawater was cooled during the summer and heated in the winter to maintain 8 °C.

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Acknowledgements

The present study was funded by the department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada under the Aquaculture Collaborative R&D Program (ACRDP-PCRDA) and the AquaNet excellence network (AP-34) in collaboration with the Ministère de l’agriculture, des pêcheries et de l’alimentation du Québec (MAPAQ). The authors acknowledge the meaningful contribution of Dr. Robert Roy of DFO-MPO (deceased in 2014) and would like to express their gratitude to D. Ouellet, A. Savoie, and T. Grenier for their technical assistance.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département des sciences animales, Faculté des sciences de l’agriculture et de l’alimentation, Université Laval, QC, Québec, Canada

    Bernard-Antonin Dupont Cyr & Grant W. Vandenberg

  2. Nofima, N-9021, Tromsø, Norway

    Helge Tveiten

  3. Pêches et Océans Canada, Institut Maurice Lamontagne, Mont-Joli, QC, G5H 3Z4, Canada

    Domynick Maltais

  4. Département de biologie, chimie et géographie, Université du Québec à Rimouski, Rimouski, QC, G5L 3A1, Canada

    Nathalie R. Le François

  5. Division des Collections Vivantes et de la Recherche, Biodôme de Montréal, 4777, Ave Pierre-De Coubertin, Montréal, QC, H1V 1B3, Canada

    Nathalie R. Le François

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  1. Bernard-Antonin Dupont Cyr
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  2. Helge Tveiten
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  3. Domynick Maltais
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  5. Nathalie R. Le François
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Correspondence to Nathalie R. Le François.

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N.R.L.F. has equal authorship with the first author.

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Dupont Cyr, BA., Tveiten, H., Maltais, D. et al. Photoperiod manipulation for the reproductive management of captive wolffish populations: Anarhichas minor and A. lupus. Aquacult Int 26, 1051–1065 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-018-0267-x

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