Recent advances and scope for sea farming in India

Although brackishwater prawn and fish culture was traditionally practiced for a long time in the country, efforts at sea farming are still in their infancy. During the past 15 years the Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute has developed various technologies for sea farming of mussels, pearl oysters, production of cultured pearls, edible oysters, clams, prawns, lobsters, seaweeds and more recently sea cucumbers and top shells. The paper outlines recent developments in these areas as well as in others like sea ranching of marine prawns and pearl oyster, and scope for enlarging sea farming activities including development of artificial reefs in India.

Influence of salinity on population growth of a rotifer, Brachionus plicatilis (Mullen)

The rotifer Brachionus plicatilis plays an important role in prawn hatcheries. It tolerates a wide range of salinities. The present experiments were conducted to find the optimum salinity for its mass culture. Experiments conducted on various ranges of salinities starting from 0 to 40 ppt at an interval of 5 ppt revealed that Brachionus plicatilis did not survive at salinities 0 and 40 ppt. Optimum salinity studies conducted at 5-15 ppt with an interval of 1 ppt showed that the production of 70 individuals/ml was highest at 10 ppt salinity and the doubling time ranged from 1.728 to 1.317 days.

外来入侵种紫茎泽兰竞争策略与扩散动态

紫茎泽兰（Eupatorium adenophorum Spreng.）作为重要的外来入侵种之一，已严重破坏了入侵地生态系统的结构与功能，同时使当地农林业生产蒙受巨大的损失。因此，明确紫茎泽兰的竞争策略与扩散潜力，对制定合理的控制措施具有重要意义。 土壤氮素增加常常有助于外来种的入侵，那么降氮能否抵制入侵呢？向土壤中添加碳素，增强微生物对氮素的吸收，从而降低土壤中可被植物吸收的氮素是目前常用的降氮方法。为检验这一假说对入侵种紫茎泽兰的适用性，选取入侵种紫茎泽兰和本地种禾本科雀麦（Bromus japonicus）、菊科鱼眼草（Dichrocephala integrifolia），分别单栽或与紫茎泽兰混栽，向各植物组合中添加碳素（按1650克有机质/平方米计）或氮素（按30克氮素/平方米计），并设立对照进行盆栽实验。在碳素添加条件下，紫茎泽兰地上与地下生物量分别比对照降低了71.9% 和 74.9%，而本地种的生物量却没有受到显著影响。同时，碳素添加导致紫茎泽兰对本地种的竞争强度（RII）明显下降。氮素添加则减弱或逆转了上述碳素的作用。因此，向土壤中添加碳素有助于抵抗氮沉降对外来种入侵的促进作用，特别对抵御那些与氮素有亲和力的入侵种更为有效。在不同氮素条件下，紫茎泽兰对本地种竞争中，资源竞争强度均明显大于化感作用。尽管在紫茎泽兰发育早期化感作用较小，但是，碳素添加使紫茎泽兰可利用氮素减少，激发了化感作用在竞争中占有更大的比例，说明资源竞争与化感是相互结合、共同发挥作用的。 去叶作为模拟采食方法之一，至少可以通过两种方式影响植物竞争。一是去叶对目标种生长产生负面影响，二是邻种去叶有利于目标种生长，进而改变种间竞争关系。基于以上假定，对紫茎泽兰与相邻本地种分别单栽、同种合栽和异种混栽，进行去叶处理。结果恰与假定相悖：在整个生长季内，去叶增加目标株生物量的1.0 – 198.9%。对于入侵种而言，当邻居本地种去叶时，紫茎泽兰能完全弥补竞争产生的负面效应，即它与未去叶的单栽紫茎泽兰生长无显著差异;而紫茎泽兰去叶降低了相邻本地种的生长，加剧了原本由于竞争给对本地种带来的负面影响。因此，去叶效应与邻种的存在与否及邻种的类型均有关。在应用生物控制对目标株采食时，特别是在没有造成严重伤害或致死情况下，可以使本来具有竞争优势的入侵种变得更具强势。竞争与去叶之间存在复杂的相互作用，采食带来的间接效应可能比预想的更为复杂。因此，在生物控制措施实施之前，充分地估计生物控制的间接作用至关重要。 为检验反应—扩散模型（reaction–diffusion model）能否正确模拟紫茎泽兰小尺度扩散速率，本研究调查了四川攀枝花山区5个不同的生境的紫茎泽兰群落。对各样地内紫茎泽兰定位和年龄确定，基于克里金插值法做出其入侵格局的等年线图，通过等年线之间的垂直距离即可得到紫茎泽兰扩散速率的经验值。同时，计算内禀增长率和扩散系数，根据模型计算得到扩散速率的预测值。结果表明：紫茎泽兰扩散速率经验值明显小于模型预测值。因此，尽管反应—扩散模型已在大尺度扩散预测方面得到广泛的应用和验证，但在小尺度上，由于没有借助于复杂的生活史模型和分层模型，单凭反应—扩散模型不足以得到准确的预测。另外，在没有遭受干扰的生境中，可以发现紫茎泽兰扩散早期存在明显的时滞期。倘若这种时滞效应在入侵扩散中是频繁发生的，那么在判定物种是否具有入侵性时，很可能由于物种处于时滞期而被误认为非入侵种。 基于紫茎泽兰入侵至中国60年来所收集到的441已知分布记录和23个环境变量，采用GARP模型对其潜在分布范围做出了预测，并通过Kappa和ROC（receiver–operator characteristic）对预测结果进行检验。结果表明紫茎泽兰目前分布以云贵高原为主体，逐渐向四川盆地东部、山东半岛、东南沿海、台湾沿海以及海南岛等地扩散。冷季降水量、年极端低温和年均最高温对分布影响较大。RDA（Redundancy Analysis）分析结果显示温度和降水是限制紫茎泽兰扩散的重要因素。在过去的20年里，紫茎泽兰已经从温度较高、天气波动较小的亚热带气候逐渐向气候温凉、降水减少的高海拔地区扩散。紫茎泽兰可以适应相对较宽的温度和降水梯度，年均温度在10—22 ˚C，年降水量在800—2000 mm区间均有分布。本研究结果为发展早期预警工作、防止紫茎泽兰在中国进一步入侵提供了科学依据。

Culture of Moina micrura on various organic waste products

Moina micrura, a cladoceran species, is considered to be one of the best live food organisms for rearing the young larval stages of fish and prawn. Considering the importance of this species in hatchery operations the present study was undertaken to record its fecundity and life span and to culture it using different locally available organic waste products. In indoor culture, a maximum production of 2600 ind/1 and a minimum of 1050 ind/1 were obtained when treated with gram + maize oilcake and "till" oilcake respectively. In outdoor culture, a highest production of 6000 ind/1 was achieved with "Alsi" and "till" oilcakes and a lowest density of 1050 ind/1 with coconut oilcake and raw cattle dung was obtained with an inoculation rate of 5 ind/1.

Effect of dietary protein level on the growth of Deccan mahseer fry Tor khudree Sykes

Four feeds having different protein levels were separately tested on Tor khudree fry having an average length of 23.5 mm and weight 55 mg. The best average growth of 15.66 mg and 0.456 mm/day was obtained with Feed IV which comprised rice bran, ground nut oil cake, Acetes, wheat flour and mineral mix at the ratio of 1:1:1:0.7143:0.01428. These constitute 35.29% of proteins. The Feed II which comprised R.B + G.O.C. + prawn shell + wheat flour and mineral mix at a ratio of 1:1:1:0.7143:0.01428 contained 32.61% crude proteins. It provided a growth rate of 14.83 mg and 0.440 mm per day. The conversion rates were 38.258 and 37.776 for feeds IV and II respectively. Since Feed II is cheaper than Feed IV and provides almost equal growth rate, it can be used in the nurseries for intensive rearing of T. khudree fry.

Length-weight relationship and relative condition factor in Macrobrachium (Hellex)

The length-weight relationship was calculated for the freshwater prawn Macrobrachium idae. About 150 specimens of M. idae (males 50, females 50 and 50 juveniles) were utilised for this study. The length-weight relationship was assessed separately for males, females and indeterminants. The regression equation for males, females and indeterminants showed significant differences whereas it was insignificant for males and females. The variations in length-weight relation between sexes and indeterminants were compared and discussed. The relationship between total length with carapace length and total length with rostral length were also determined.

Distribution of decapod larvae in the Bombay Harbour-Thana-Bassein Creek regions

Variations in the abundance and composition of larval decapods were studied from 90 km stretch of the Bombay Harbour-Thana Creek-Bassein Creek (BHTCBC) system for a period of 15 months. The larvae belonged to Penacidea, Caridea, Anomura and Brachyura. Among these, brachyurans were the most abundant in the entire study area indicating good potential for crab fishery. Penaeus, Metapenaeus and Parapenaeopsis were the genera recorded in the family Penaeidae of which Metapenaeus spp. were the most common. Generally there was a higher abundance of Penaeus and Metapenaeus during monsoon probably indicating intense breeding. A few genera of decapods showed patchy occurrence in this system. Results of this first investigation were quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated with comments on fishery potential of the commercially important groups of decapods.

A study of the male reproductive organs of nine species of penaeid prawns (Crustacea: Penaeinae)

This paper deals with the male reproductive organs of nine species of penaeid prawns; Penaeus penicillatus Alcock, P. merguiensis De Man, P. semisulcatus De Haan, Metapenaeus affinis (H.Milne Edwards), M. monoceros (Fabricius), M. stebbingi Nobili, Parapenaeopsis hardwickii (Miers), P. sculptilis (Heller) and P. stylifera (H. Milne Edwards). The male reproductive organs exhibited structural variations, which were more pronounced at generic level. These variations are mainly due to the type of spermatophore they possess. One species of each genus, that is, P. merguiensis, M. affinis and P. sculptilis were also studied histologically to examine the internal structure of the male reproductive organs. Spermatophores of the six species belonging to the genera Penaeus and Parapenaeopsis are also described and illustrated.

Deepwater prawns and lobsters off the Kerala coast

Majority of the prawn catch of the Kerala coast comes from the inshore regions within the 10 fathom line. A bottom deposit formed of fine mud rich in humus is found to be the ideal condition for the penaeid prawns. Similarly the lobster is observed in large numbers at localised areas very near the coast in the crevices of rocks. Though it has been observed that prawns and lobsters exist in deep water as well under different conditions, our knowledge about these forms along the Indian coasts is very scanty, being restricted to the works of Spence Bate, Alcock, De Man and Ramadan. Recently, during the cruises of the University Research Vessel Conch off the Kerala Coast (1958-1963) two species of deep water prawns and one species of lobster were collected from depths 100 - 180 fathoms. Of these, Penaeopsis philippi is found in large numbers occupying an almost continuous bed extending from Anjengo to Mangalore, while P. rectacutus has a restricted appearance between Cochin and Calicut. However, some sort of year to year variation has also been observed regarding the abundance of the species at various stations. Peurulus sewelli has a more restricted distribution, the maximum number being found between Puvar and Cochin. Attempt has been made to correlate the occurrence of the species with the hydrological conditions at the bottom and the nature of the substratum. It is observed that Peurulus sewelli occupies a more or less hard bed formed of sand with shell fragments or stones and small percentage of silt, the bottom temperature at the stations varying from 11°C to l4°C. P. sewelli is a more or less permanent inhabitant of the edge of the continental shell off the Kerala Coast worthy of attention for detailed investigation with a view to explore the possibilities of commercial exploitation.

Note on the size groups of prawns landed by shrimp trawls of four different cod end meshes

A study on the different size groups of prawns caught by four shrimp trawls having different cod-end meshes was made by the author. The results indicate that small sized prawns of mean length 77.15 mm were captured by the net having 23.38 mm cod-end at 5-6 fathoms depth, medium prawns of mean length 105.22 mm was caught in 25.21 mm and 19.88 mm cod-end at 8 fathoms depth and big sized prawns of mean length 117.98 mm were caught in 21.29 mm cod-end. Further the relation of length on breadth of prawn is worked out to be : Bp=0.15 Lp - 1.50 where Bp and Lp are breadth and length respectively.

Studies on the possible sources of microbial contaminations of processed fishery products

An attempt has been made in the present study to estimate and describe in detail the nature and extent of contamination of processed fishery products. In large scale prawn processing when the preprocess preparation is elaborate, the industry in India has found it advantageous to establish the primary processing centers away from the processing factories. The data collected have clearly indicated that if such processing centers are not properly organized there is a possibility of greater contamination of the products at this stage. The data collected during the course of this investigation have given the basis for the measures to be taken for the maintenance of bacterial quality of prawn during different stages of processing.

Studies on phenolase enzymes in prawns. Pt. 1. The distribution and physical properties of phenolases in Penaeid prawns

The distribution of phenolases in certain species of Penaeid prawns has been studied. Attempts were made to locate the regions of maximum enzyme activity in the prawns. The relative dopase activity has been examined in extracts from head, tail, shell with cuticles and muscle. The head juice and tail extracts were found to register very high order of enzyme activity. Metapenaeus affinis, Metapenaeus monoceros and Penaeus indicus record comparatively higher enzyme activity than Parapenaeopsis stylifera and Metapenaeus dobsoni, no definite relationship has been found between the relative activity of the enzyme and size grade at least in one species examined. Experiments were done to determine the pH optima of the enzyme and the influence of pH on its deactivation. Exposure to higher temperatures up to 55°c was shown to activate the crude enzyme considerably. The possible implications of the observations have been discussed.

Studies on technological problems associated with the processing of cooked frozen prawns. Pt. 1. Preprocess storage conditions of raw material in relation to quality

The chemical and organoleptic properties of prawn held in ice for different days prior to cooking and the changes after freezing and subsequent storage were studied with three different species of prawn viz. Metapenaeus monoceros, Metapenaeus dobsoni and Parapeneopsis stylifera. The optimum period for which the prawn can be kept under ideal conditions of icing prior to cooking has been worked out.

Studies on blackening of canned prawns. Pt. 1. Influence of copper and iron on product blackening

A linear relationship was observed between the copper content and intensity of blackening in commercially canned prawn meat. Average copper and iron contents of non-blackened canned prawn meat were 9.6 and 32.5 ppm on dry weight basis respectively. In the blackened product copper content ranged from 15.8 to 63.9 ppm and iron content between 43.7 and 71.45 ppm depending on the intensity of blackening. But incorporation of copper in the above range to experimental cans produced blackening while iron up to 250 ppm did not impart any blackening under standard conditions of canning.

An accelerated method of hot air drying of fish

The effects of temperature and relative humidity on the rate of drying of split open fish and salted fish in a tunnel dryer have been studied at a constant air velocity. By a judicious combination of these two, the rate of drying could be considerably accelerated, 10 to 12 hours only being required for drying to moisture levels below 30% in the case of mackerel, lactarius, otolithes and kilimeen (Nemipterus japonicus)