Title
Oyster farms are the main spawning grounds of the black sea bream Acanthopagrus schlegelii in Hiroshima Bay, Japan
Date Issued
01 June 2021
Access level
open access
Resource Type
journal article
Author(s)
Hiroshima University
Publisher(s)
PeerJ Inc.
Abstract
Understanding the anthropogenic impact of oyster farms is essential for the management and conservation of marine fishes. In Japan, Hiroshima Bay is the region with the most intense oyster farming and thus suitable to study the impact of these farms. Here, we surveyed spherical planktonic eggs of the black sea bream Acanthopagrus schlegelii, one of the most abundant fish in the Bay. Our survey was performed at fourteen stations which included places with oyster farms and historical spawning grounds. We found the highest egg densities in four stations, one with historical spawning aggregations and three with major oyster farms. Besides, surveys at the innermost part of Hiroshima Bay, where two major rivers discharge, showed a low density of eggs indicating that black sea bream avoids spawning in low salinity areas. Our study suggests that oyster farms benefit spawners of black sea bream by providing more food sources than historical spawning grounds for efficient spawning. Yet, whether oyster farms represent a full advantage for the species remains unclear, particularly because they are known to host jellyfishes that prey on eggs and limit water flow that can influence the survival of fish eggs.
Volume
9
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Biología marina, Biología de agua dulce, Limnología
Subjects
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85107019898
Source
PeerJ
Resource of which it is part
PeerJ
ISSN of the container
21678359
Sponsor(s)
This research was supported by a Grant-in-Aid for challenging Exploratory Research (No. 16K14974 to Tetsuya Umino) and Grant-in-Aid for JSPS Fellows (No. 18J22335 to Kentaro Kawai) from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Kentaro Kawai was also supported by the Hiroshima University Education and Research Support Foundation. No additional external funds were received for this study. The funders had no role in study design, data collection, and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.
The following grant information was disclosed by the authors: Exploratory Research: 16K14974. JSPS: 18J22335. Japan Society for the Promotion of Science. Hiroshima University Education and Research Support Foundation.
Sources of information:
Directorio de Producción Científica
Scopus