Dedicated To Tribal Aquaculture Programs
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December 1999 ~ Volume 30 | |
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Topics of Interest:
We're Back
We're Back
You may recall in a previous issue of the MTAN, we expressed our concern that this publication may not be able to continue. Funding for the initial startup and continuation of the newsletter (for the past seven years) has been provided by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (Midwest Region). The MTAN is grateful to the Bureau for their long term support and commitment to Tribal fish hatchery programs. However, over time all things change as new priorities and responsibilities are established. One of these changes is that the financial support of the MTAN is now the goal of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Ashland Fisheries Resources Office). The decision to keep the MTAN going was ultimately determined as a direct result of the AUser Survey@ we initiated last summer. The responses we received from our readers expressed a strong desire that the MTAN should continue.
The MTAN will continue to highlight Tribal fish hatchery programs as well as state-of-the-art fish culture practices. However, one of the changes we will incorporate (starting with the March 2000 issue) is to post each the MTAN 's on the Internet and mail our participating members an announcement of each current issue. You can find all previous issues of the MTAN at: http://www.fws.gov/midwest/ashland/mtanhome.html You can print each issue directly from your computer to suit your specific needs. If your Tribal fish hatchery program has not yet established Internet access, be sure to contact Frank Stone so we can arrange to have the full version of each MTAN newsletter mailed directly to you.
Cool/Warm Water Fish Culture Course
I you are interested in attending a cool/warm water fish culture course, please contact the MTAN. We are only soliciting for interested participants at this time, no official dates have been established. However, the MTAN will pass on the responses we receive to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service National Conservation Training Academy so they can better decide if such a course is warranted. Please direct your calls to Frank Stone (frank_stone@fws.gov) at 715-682-6185 ext. 202.
Keweenaw Bay Indian Community
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is pleased to announce the signing of a THIRD fish isolation cooperative agreement with the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. The Keweenaw Bay Indian Fish Hatchery will once again serve as a broodstock isolation facility to help enhance fish restoration efforts in the Great Lakes. This new agreement is a continuation of the lake trout and coaster brook trout restoration effort that was first started by the Service and the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community four years ago.
This new agreement will foster the continued integration of fish health and fish genetics into the Services captive broodstock program. The Keweenaw Bay Indian Fish Hatchery first initiated this two-year cooperative program in September of 1995. The projects continue to include the operation of a lake trout and coaster brook trout broodstock isolation facility at the Keweenaw Bay Fish Hatchery and the production of 100,000 lake trout yearlings at the Iron River National Fish Hatchery (Iron River Wisconsin).
The lake trout and coaster brook trout resources of the Great Lakes Region will be the big winner thanks to the cooperative efforts of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community. Fish hatcheries play an important role in co-managing inter-jurisdictional fishery resources and lake restoration efforts.
Midwestern tribes have responded to the modern day challenges of multi-jurisdictional resource management in their unique role as users and managers of over 900,000 acres of reservation inland lakes, treaty ceded territories and the Great Lakes. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is grateful to the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community for there continued support of the needs of the National Fish Hatchery system and the Great Lakes Fishery.
Red Lake Indian Reservation
By: John Karl, Great Lakes Information Network
Members of the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians and other Minnesota and Wisconsin tribes learned state-of-the-art aquaculture techniques during a three-day intensive training session last August at UW-Milwaukee's Great Lakes WATER Institute. The tribe is turning to aquaculture to revitalize its economy after commercial fishing on Minnesota's Upper and Lower Red Lakes was closed down in 1997. The training is part of a project to adopt a new form of commercial fish production that may allow fish with the Red Lake label to once again grace the dinner tables of the north central United States.
The WATER Institute is cooperating with the Red Lake Band, the Minneapolis office of the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute to revitalize the tribe's commercial fishing industry, boost the local economy, and establish a model of fish farming for other tribes and entrepreneurs to follow.
The training program featured specialized classroom and hands-on sessions on the operation of recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS), a new technology for low-impact, high-production aquaculture. Participants learned the practical aspects of fish health, yellow perch biology, microbiology, water chemistry, and the engineering aspects of RAS units.
The three-day program was part of a project involving dual, commercial-scale RAS units in Wisconsin and Minnesota. One was constructed at the Aquaculture Center with a $10,000 grant from the UW Sea Grant Institute and a matching grant from the Red Lake Band. A parallel unit and other components were built on the Red Lake Reservation with an additional $65,000 from the Red Lake Band. The Aquaculture Center's unit will be used for research, education, and training, while the Red Lake unit will be used for training and fish production.
Fred Binkowski, Senior Scientist at the Great Lakes WATER Institute, has been conducting research on the intensive culture of yellow perch for more than a decade. Binkowski began working with tribal biologists in 1992 and with the Red Lake Band more recently. In March, the first perch fingerlings were placed in the tribe's RAS demonstration unit. Tribal members have been caring for the fish, monitoring growth, and learning to solve problems.
The WATER Institute's Aquaculture Center, in conjunction with the Bureau of Indian Affairs, has also conducted cooperative projects with the Leech Lake Reservation in Minnesota and the Lac du Flambeau Band in Wisconsin.
The following article was submitted to the MTAN by Allen Brown (Hatchery Manager of the Welaka National Fish Hatchery). Although the fish species discussed is Gulf sturgeon, the MTAN feels there are a great deal of fish culture techniques similar to those used for rearing Midwestern sturgeon. This kind of information transfer can be very helpful in planning and designing Lake sturgeon propagation procedures within your program area.
Gulf Sturgeon Spawning Techniques (Part 1 of 2)
Submitted By: Allen Brown, Welaka NFH, Welaka, FL, 904-467-2374
Gulf sturgeon are anadromous fish that migrate from the Gulf of Mexico in the early spring to ascend the fresh water Gulf coast river systems for spawning and return to the marine habitat in the fall. The Gulf sturgeon are slow growing, long-lived fish, with specimens reported measuring up to 4.3 m in length and weighing up to 226 kg. However, current data has documented very few Gulf sturgeon in excess of 90 kg. Due to the large size of the fish, special equipment is required in order to handle the fish in a stress-free manner, and reduce the risk of injury to the fish and its investigators.
1 . BROODSTOCK HOLDING AND HANDLING
A. Holding Tanks
Broodstock holding tanks should have the capacity to maintain several fish in good physical condition. Female and male broodstock were held 7 and 30 days respectively in separate, circular, fiberglass tanks, 3 m in diameter and 0.9 m deep, without exhibiting any adverse effects. Tank interiors should be a light color to help locate and distinguish various fish from one another. Outside tank valves and drains are recommended to eliminate any obstructions within the tank that could either injure or be damaged by the fish. Also, in order to minimize any stress on the fish, the tanks should be covered and sheltered from direct sunlight, and located in an area of minimal public disturbance.
DATA GAP: Gulf sturgeon females have been held in tanks for up to seven days and have ovulated successfully. However, extended periods of confinement may stress the females causing them to reabsorb the oocytes. Further research is needed to address the time period female broodstock can be confined and still ovulate successfully.
The water in the broodstock holding tanks may be oxygenated using mechanical aerators or by injecting the water into the tank above the media. Water introduced in the tank to create a circular flow helps maintain fish position. Water flows of 150 L/min or 3 tank exchanges/hr are recommended minimum rates. Water supply systems should incorporate a generator, pumps, and a valve manipulation system that would enable the shifting of water supply functions. In addition, PVC pipe is suggested to be used to plumb in the water supply system due to its low cost, availability, and handling efficiency.
A 1,400 L oblong galvanized tank (240.0 cm long x 75.0 cm wide x 60.0 cm deep) for short term holding of female broodstock is useful for administering hormone injections and monitoring ovulation. This tank enables fish to be removed with a minimum of stress and handling. It is suggested that minimum water flows and dissolved oxygen levels be 70 L/m and 50 mg/L, respectively. Sturgeon eggs are adhesive and ovulation can be better observed in the holding tank if the tank interior is a light color or removable mats are placed in the tank for the eggs to adhere. In addition, an overflow pipe outside the tank can be equipped with a fine mesh net for the purpose of collecting eggs released during ovulation. The tank also should be covered to minimize any disturbances and keep the fish from jumping out.
B. Marking Broodstock
A method to identify individual fish is essential to reduce stress on the fish during handling. Spaghetti tags inserted in pectoral and pelvic fins are difficult to read without handling the fish. Larger cattle ear tags attached to the caudal peduncle with nylon cable ties are readable, but the peduncle area is subject to high irritation due to constant swimming. A cattle ear tag attached to the dorsal fin with twine is easily readable, does not irritate the fish, and is recommended.
C. Aeration
Water in brood holding and ovulation tanks, egg incubators and larval tanks must maintain dissolved oxygen levels in excess of 5 mg/L in order to maintain fish in a healthy, stress-free environment. Using a regenerative blower to inject air through carbon, glass, or tube diffusers can increase the dissolved oxygen in the units by 2 mg/L. Although more expensive, pure oxygen can be used with similar results. An aeration system provides safety in case there is a water supply malfunction, and also is valuable in maintaining dissolved oxygen levels during short-term static chemical treatment procedures for fish pathogens.
D. Tube Net
A nylon tube net (2.4 m long x .6 m wide with a 3 mm mesh) equipped with handled hoops at each end is effective in capturing and removing sturgeon from the holding tanks with a minimum of stress. It is helpful if the tube net is dark in color to reduce the possibility of frightening the fish and avoid any unnecessary stress.
E. Stretcher
A stretcher is used to hold fish during examination and processing. The stretcher consists of smooth, nonabrasive, fiber-reinforced nylon sheeting attached to two 2.4 m aluminum poles. It is capable of supporting a fish at least 114.0 kg in weight. During examination of the fish, the stretcher is supported on saw horses. The stretcher poles are placed in notched racks installed on the saw horses in order to help restrain the fish's movement by compressing the stretcher. The stretcher has a hood at one end that covers the fish's head and serves as a respiration chamber when flooded with water. During examination and egg and milt extraction, the fish is positioned ventral side up with its head inside the hooded canopy. This canopy further restrains the fish and positions the mouth to receive the water tube.
F . Water Tube
During broodstock examination and egg removal, a tygon tubing ( 2.5 cm OD) is placed through the opening in the hood of the stretcher, positioned in the fish's mouth, and water introduced through the tube. Care must be taken to keep the tube in the fish's mouth and to maintain a constant flow of water over the gills.
2. BROODSTOCK EVALUATION
A. Surgical Procedures
1 . Place fish on the stretcher, dorsal surface down, with head positioned under the stretcher 's hood.
2 . Place a water tube in the fish's mouth and monitor its flow. Be watchful that the tube does not slip out of the mouth.
3 . Position one person at the head of the stretcher (responsible for monitoring the water tube) and one person at the tail end of the stretcher. In the event the fish starts moving, these people can close the handles of the stretcher and restrict movement.
4. Wash the abdominal area with an approved antibacterial solution.
5. Use rubber gloves during the examination.
6. Make a 1.0 cm incision on either the left or right side of the ventral midline, a distance of the fourth ventral scute anterior to the genital pore. Use a scalpel fitted with a size ten blade.
7 . Using tissue forceps, enter the body cavity through the incision and remove a small piece of tissue. Examine the tissue to determine the sex of the fish (Surgical Examinations [from Conte et al., 1988]).
B. Males - Sex Determination
Ripe males collected during the spawning period may have free flowing milt, or milt may be expressed from the genital opening by gently pressing on the posterior abdominal area of the fish. However, less than 10% of males collected express milt and surgical examination is necessary in order to verify sex.
C. Males - Testes Classification
The testes may be smooth, white to yellow in color, and may have dark spots. Fat and testis tissue look similar. In order to distinguish one from the other, place a small piece of the tissue in a vial of 4% formalin -- fat tissue floats and testis tissue sinks. Tissue of a ripe male is creamy white, and soft and greasy feeling when rubbed between the thumb and forefinger. Unripe testes will have some dark pigmentation, yellow fat deposits, and be firm to the touch. The condition of the testes determines the potential for inducing the fish to spawn.
Testes Classification (from Conte et al., 1988)
Stage 0 - gonad apparent only as undifferentiated tissue; Stage I - testes appear as a thin strip of tissue; Stage 2 - small testes, high adipose content, some smokey pigmentation; Stage 3 - large testes, some adipose lobes appearing, some pigmentation; Stage 4 - large, lobular white.
Stages 0, 1, and 2 testes are immature, while Stage 3 testes will produce sperm, but viability is often reduced. Stage 4 testes are mature.
D . Females - Sex Determination
Ripe females may sometimes be distinguished from males by a swollen abdomen and enlarged girth. The genital pore on females near spawning may be swollen and purplish in color. Although males and females overlap in size, fish in excess of 45 kg are usually females. They should be surgically examined in order to verify sex and determine the developmental stage of the ovaries.
E. Determining Mature
Ovaries - GV
The ovary may be granular, white to yellowish to light gray, and may have a "salt and pepper" appearance, or may have black oocytes. If oocytes are black in color, remove some using 0. 5 m long tygon tubing (4. 0 mm I.D.). Draw a small amount of Leibovitz (L-15) incubation media or saline solution into the tube, and insert the tube into the egg mass. Remove a minimum of 100 oocytes by aspiration and place the oocytes in enough incubation media to cover the sample. The oocytes are examined for germinal vesicle (GV) positioning using the following steps:
F. Determining Mature
Ovaries - GVBD
1. Remove 50 oocytes from the Leibovitz incubation medium (prior to boiling sample) and divide the oocytes into two petri dishes containing 20.0 ml of Leibovitz incubation medium (take care not to add additional volume of incubation medium to the dishes when transferring the oocytes).
2. Add 0.2 ml of predissolved progesterone maturation solution to each culture plate and gently mix (progesterone stock solution is prepared by adding 10 mg to 10 ml of 100% ethyl alcohol).
3. Incubate the samples for 24 hours at 15-16 C. No agitation or special atmosphere is required.
4. Determination of mature ovaries is based on the absence of the germinal vesicle in the oocyte (germinal vesicle breakdown, or GVBD). Suitable females would exhibit a GVBD between 80 to 100%. Females with a GVBD below 80% would be questionable spawning candidates and fish exhibiting a GVBD between 0 and 10% would not be ripe .
G. Postsurgical Procedures
The incision is sutured using a cruciate suture pattern. The suture should not be tight in order to allow for some swelling. Use a curved, OS-4 cutting surgical needle swedged with "Ethibond" green braided polyester #1 gauge suture material for closing the incision. Wash the area with an approved antibiotic solution and return the fish to the holding tank.
DATA GAP: Anesthetics have not been administered to Gulf sturgeon during surgical procedures. Although the fish lend themselves very well to various examinations without being subject to anesthetics, there are periods when the fish may become active, especially during oocyte removal, and cause undue stress and possible injury to the fish and personnel involved in the procedures. It is recommended that the use of approved anesthetics on sturgeon be evaluated as a means to reduce handling stress, as well as maintaining the fish in a relaxed state during surgical and egg removal procedures.
In addition, it is sometimes difficult to interpret the findings during a surgical evaluation of fish to determine its potential to spawn. It is suggested that information such as color plates depicting the various stages of reproductive tissue be developed for use in evaluating sturgeon broodstock.
3. HORMONES
A. Hormones
Common carp pituitary (CCP) has been successfully used to induce ovulation in Gulf sturgeon. Acetone-dried sturgeon pituitary and common carp pituitary have been used to induce spermatogenesis in Gulf male sturgeon.
B. Hormone (CCP) Preparation
1. Common carp pituitary should be stored in a refrigerator.
2. It is convenient to pre-weigh the hormone in several units (10, 20, 30, 50 and 100 mg) prior to mixing.
3. The hormone mixture is prepared just prior to being used.
4. Acetone-dried common carp pituitary is prepared by mixing the powder form (CCP) in a carrier solution of 0.6 percent physiological saline.
5. The calculated amount of hormone for each dose is placed in a tissue grinder and mixed with a minimum amount of saline carrier solution (1.0-1.5 cc) necessary to obtain a uniform mixture (15-30 min).
6. After the mixture is thoroughly combined, a syringe is used to draw the prepared hormone from the tissue grinder.
7. The shelf life of the prepared hormone is about one hour at room temperature and should be administered immediately.
DATA GAP: Common carp and Gulf sturgeon pituitaries were the only hormone inducing agents administered to the Gulf sturgeon. Research should be conducted on the use of other approved hormones for inducing ovulation or enhancing the capacity to respond to the inducing hormone.
The information that follows was located by the MTAN from the following Internet Web address: http://www.epa.gov/indian/tribhand.htm
Tribal Environmental and Natural Resource Assistance Handbook
This handbook is intended to provide a central location for federal sources of both technical and financial assistance available to Tribes for environmental management.
Many Tribes have limited environmental staffs that are faced with the challenge of addressing a broad range of environmental issues. Unlike State environmental programs that have received annual federal funding for many years, Tribal environmental programs generally must compete annually for their funds. With 554 federally recognized Tribes, there simply is not enough money to go around. Therefore, Tribal environmental staffs spend a large part of their time applying for grants and searching for sources of federal assistance. This document is an effort to assist Tribal staff in their search and hopefully save them valuable time. The handbook can also assist federal, regional, State and Local government employees in becoming better informed about the sources of environmental assistance available in order to improve customer service to the Tribes.
New Fish Hatchery at Lac Du Flambeau
By: Larry Wawronowicz, Natural Resources Director, Lac du Flambeau Reservation
The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians just completed building a new fish hatchery. The 4,680 square foot building (65' x 72') replaced a hatchery that was built in 1936 and hopefully the new one will be as successful. Physically, the building consists of offices, crew room, shop/maintenance area, hatching area, process room and mezzanine. The William J. Poupart, Sr. Tribal Fish Hatchery was designed to hatch both cool water and cold water fish species by utilizing 300 McDonald jars and 5 eight tray Heath incubators. There are 5-60 jar walleye/white sucker batteries along with 1-20 jar muskellunge battery. Each battery flows into 6-7 foot diameter by 30 inch deep fry tanks which gives us the capability to separate eggs fro different lakes or basins. The muskellunge battery system was designed to maintain the hatching water at a constant temperature by opening and closing warm water and cold water valves. The hatchery has two water supplies. Well water is obtained from a 100 foot well with a 12 inch casing with a pump capable of producing 900-1,000 gallons per minute. Lake water is obtained from Pokegama Lake by a 350 foot, 18 inch diameter water supply line that terminates with a slotted tee screen. Three 1,200 gallon per minute pumps supply water to the hatchery, raceways and ponds. The pumps are individually controlled by Allen-Bradley electronics that can increase or decrease the rpm's of the pumps when there is an increase or decrease in demand for water. The master control panel allows the hatchery crew to observe were and how much water is distributed to each portion of the fish culture facilities. An alarm system and automatic dialer is also part of the master control panel which assists in providing the hatchery manager with 24 hour coverage. In addition to the fry tanks there are 6-5 foot diameter by 42 inch rearing tanks. Both the fry tanks and rearing tanks can receive well and lake water. The facility has a Mezzanine which contains three head tanks (i.e., well, lake and heated), the 72 inch by 48 inch diameter by 5 micron drum screen, boilers and heat exchanger. The head tanks gravity feeds water to all rearing/fry tanks and hatching batteries and the drum screen filters the lake water before being distributed. All solids greater then five microns are removed. The drum screen cleans automatically and can be by-passed if filtered water is not required. The heat exchanger warms the water for the muskellunge battery and is controlled by the master control panel. The building was designed to allow fish transport trucks and other vehicles to drive through to fill with well or lake water, pick up or drop off fish. A 100KW Onan generator and associated transfer switches supply emergency power during power failures.
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Product and company names mentioned in this publication are for informational purposes only. It does not imply endorsement by the MTAN or the U.S. Government. |
