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Escape-related behavior and coping ability of sea bream due to food supply

Aquaculture International volume 20, pages 965–979 (2012)Cite this article

Abstract

Escape of fish is a significant problem for the sustainability of the aquaculture industry. In the Mediterranean Sea, sea bream (Sparus aurata) has been reported to escape from sea cage installations. However, the related factors leading to this behavior still remain unknown. This study focuses on the impact that the food supplied to sea bream has on its interaction with the net and therefore its escape behavior. We test three food ratios (2, 1 and 0 % of the total initial body weight; FC2, FC1 and FC0 populations, respectively) and three different conditions of the net (flawless mesh, mesh with a cut twine and mesh with a tear) that are commonly found in aquaculture. Data acquisition and analysis are carried out with a tailor-made system developed in our laboratory for this purpose. We demonstrate that food supply is associated with fish interactions and the aquaculture net, while net condition is also an important stimulus for sea bream inspection and biting the net. Limited-fed fish (FC1) are more prone to interact with the net, which consequently leads them to either bite net wears or escape through tears.

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Acknowledgments

This study has been financially supported by the Commission of the European Communities under the Seventh Research Framework Program “Food, Agriculture and Fisheries and Biotechnology, Area 2.1.2 Increased sustainability of all production systems (agriculture, forestry, fisheries and aquaculture); plant health and crop protection”, 226885 “PREVENT ESCAPE—Assessing the causes and developing measures to prevent the escape of fish from sea cage aquaculture”. The authors would like to thank the Hellenic Center for Marine Research (HCMR) for providing us the sea bream and also Dr. David Gray for his assistance with English and his fruitful discussions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biology Department, University of Crete, P.O. Box 2208, 70013, Heraklion, Crete, Greece

    Alexios Glaropoulos, Vassilis M. Papadakis, Ioannis E. Papadakis & Maroudio Kentouri

  2. Institute of Electronic Structure and Laser, Foundation for Research and Technology, P.O. Box 1385, 71110, Heraklion, Crete, Greece

    Vassilis M. Papadakis

  3. Institute of Aquaculture, Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, P.O. Box 2214, 71003, Heraklion, Crete, Greece

    Ioannis E. Papadakis

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  1. Alexios Glaropoulos
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  2. Vassilis M. Papadakis
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  3. Ioannis E. Papadakis
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  4. Maroudio Kentouri
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Correspondence to Maroudio Kentouri.

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Glaropoulos, A., Papadakis, V.M., Papadakis, I.E. et al. Escape-related behavior and coping ability of sea bream due to food supply. Aquacult Int 20, 965–979 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-012-9521-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10499-012-9521-9

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