Abstract
Anchovy larvae, Engraulis mordax, were reared in the laboratory under a variety of food regimes and the triacylglycerol, cholesterol, and polar lipid contents of individual larvae were measured with the Iatroscan thin-layer chromatography/flame ionization detection (TLC/FID) system, as indicators of nutritional condition. The different food levels used in the rearings produced a clear effect on the larvae for each of the three lipid components. A comparison with field-caught larvae, which were otolith-aged and analyzed for lipid content, showed that a “standard” laboratory rearing produced larvae with a much too high lipid content. Larvae could be reared in the laboratory to have a sizespecific lipid content similar to the field individuals, but this required that the food concentration be very much lower. When group of larvae were starved, the triacylglycerol component decreased first, regardless of the size of the store at the onset of starvation. The polar lipid component was not as labile as triacylglycerol, while the cholesterol content remained essentially unchanged during starvation. The cholesterol and polar lipid contents exhibited a good straight-line relationship with the lipid-free weight of the larvae, as would be expected from indicators of larval tissue weight. The results revealed the lipid components to be very good indicators of the condition of the larvae.
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Communicated by P. C. Schroeder, Pullman
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Håkanson, J.L. Analysis of lipid components for determining the condition of anchovy larvae, Engraulis mordax . Mar. Biol. 102, 143–151 (1989). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00428274
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00428274