Ciclo vital del pulpo marmóreo, Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) (Cephalopoda: Octopodidae) criado en laboratorio

Reproducing small eggs and planktonic hatchlings is a reproductive strategy of many species of benthic octopods although it is considered a pleisiomorphic state. The young in the planktonic and settling phases have a high energy consumption and require live food of specific size range characteristics, causing difficulties in obtaining appropriate food organisms for rearing experiments through the entire life cycle. This study obtained information on details of life cycle characteristics of Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) by resolving these difficulties. The aspects of life cycle of A. aegina were similar to those of other benthic octopus with a similar reproductive strategy. Growth was allometric, consisting of 3 phases in terms of body weight, including a transitional phase for the early settling stage. Feeding and conversion efficiency peaked over a 2-month period prior to reproduction, representing the period of energy storage. Growth from hatching to spawning took approximately 74% of the entire life span and the reproductive phase itself took 34%. Such longevities are similar to those of other benthic cephalopods with planktonic hatchlings. Overall similarities in these cephalopod taxa attest to the fitness of a life-history strategy involving production of planktonic offspring from benthic adults. A. aegina is the second benthic octopus species with planktonic hatchlings for which the life cycle has been completed through rearing in the laboratory.El desove de pequeños huevos que darán origen a plancton constituye la estrategia de reproducción de numerosos octópodos bénticos, aunque se asocia a un estado plesiomórfico. Las nuevas criaturas en fase planctónica y de asentamiento requieren un gran consumo energético y nutrientes vivos con características y dimensiones específicas, lo que dificulta la obtención de organismos que les sirvan de alimento a lo largo de todo el ciclo vital. A partir de este estudio se han obtenido datos sobre las características del ciclo vital del Amphioctopus aegina (Gray) mediante la resolución de estas dificultades. Muchos aspectos del ciclo vital del A. aegina resultaron muy similares a los de otros pulpos bénticos con una estrategia de reproducción parecida. Se produjo un crecimiento alométrico en tres fases, según el peso corporal, que incluía una fase de transición en el periodo de asentamiento inicial. La eficacia en la alimentación y la conversión alcanzó su punto máximo en los 2 meses previos a la reproducción, que representan un periodo de almacenamiento energético. El crecimiento desde la eclosión hasta el desove fue aproximadamente el 74% del ciclo vital completo, y la fase reproductiva en sí supuso un 34%. Tal longevidad es compartida por otros cefalópodos bénticos con desoves planctónicos. Las similitudes generales entre estas categorías taxonómicas de cefalópodos confirman el éxito de esta estrategia de ciclos vitales en la producción de crías planctónicas por parte de adultos bénticos. A. aegina es la segunda especie de pulpo béntico con desove planctónico cuyo ciclo vital ha logrado completarse mediante la cría en laboratorio

Fisheries Co-management: An Experiential Account from Phang Nga Bay, Thailand

Like most other coastal water bodies around the world, this Thailand’s largest bay on the Andaman seaboard has suffered the similar plights that have led to serious deterioration of coastal resources over the years. Despite its natural wealth derived from the fertile watershed and tropical climatic settings, Thailand’s modern economic policies, began in 1960, have partly contributed to heavy exploitation, sometimes with destructive and indiscriminate fishing gears, resulting in a rapid decline in fish and invertebrate standing crops. Under the control of State, all fishing grounds are subject to legal measures issued primarily under the 1947 Fishery Act where fishery patrol workforce has confronted the persistent illegal fishers who have taken control by their sheer number. The government has also implemented the resource restoration measures, e.g. artificial reef placement, closed season, and closed area. The impacts on marine fisheries of marine shrimp farming that has occupied the increasing acreage along the fertile shoreline have been noted, as it closely links to other aquacultural practices, particularly those in and around the Bay. Attempting to take control in this difficult game of number, Thailand adopted community-based fishery management in the 1960s with a design for people to control people. The 1947 Constitution has helped accelerated the administrative devolution and much of the centrally controlled measures have since 2003 come under the provincial administration, headed by the more powerful governor CEO. The speedier countermeasures against illegal fishing, by local communities and governor CEO, have proved to be effective, and Phang Nga Bay in the past two years can be said to recover—almost disappearance of destructive fishing, and reappearance of some fish species, e.g. Hilsa, certain dolphins, and dugong. All these have paved a solid foundation for further co-management where all key stakeholders share decision-making and implementing their plans toward achieving their common goals. The 5-year Coastal Habitats and Coastal Resources Management (CHARM) project, co-funded by Royal Thai Government and the European Union has been devising and implementing this concept since November 2002, fortunately with some promising results. Andaman Triangle Network, a recently established coastal resource conservation group comprising relevant government departments, NGOs, and community leaders, has been active in the three provinces bordering Phang Nga Bay. What the ATN has been advocating is the co-management approach, which is intended to replace the centrally management regime, the failure of which has been evidenced by the widespread deterioration of coastal resources

World squid fisheries

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Mass Culture of Cephalopods in Thailand

Cephalopod research in Thailand has been underway since 1978 with the goal of developing successful mass-culture techniques. Results of mass cultivation have demonstrated several favorable aquaculture characteristics of cephalopods, i.e., high growth rates, short life cycle, high fecundity, high hatching rate, and absence of true larval stages. Three species are being cultured: bigfin squid, Sepioteuthis lessoniana; spineless cuttlefish, Sepiella inermis; and pharaoh cuttlefish, Sepia pharaonis. They were listed in declining order of production and suitability for aquaculture. About 2 million cephalopod seed have been produced and released annually since 1990 to enhance natural stock. Biohistory, behavior and water quality requirements are also being studied in order to supply basic information for aquaculture. However, there are also several obstacles, particularly development of cost-effective feeds

Early Mode of Life and Hatchling Size in Cephalopod Molluscs: Influence on the Species Distributional Ranges

27 pages, 4 figures, 3 tablesCephalopods (nautiluses, cuttlefishes, squids and octopuses) exhibit direct development and display two major developmental modes: planktonic and benthic. Planktonic hatchlings are small and go through some degree of morphological changes during the planktonic phase, which can last from days to months, with ocean currents enhancing their dispersal capacity. Benthic hatchlings are usually large, miniature-like adults and have comparatively reduced dispersal potential. We examined the relationship between early developmental mode, hatchling size and species latitudinal distribution range of 110 species hatched in the laboratory, which represent 13% of the total number of live cephalopod species described to date. Results showed that species with planktonic hatchlings reach broader distributional ranges in comparison with species with benthic hatchlings. In addition, squids and octopods follow an inverse relationship between hatchling size and species latitudinal distribution. In both groups, species with smaller hatchlings have broader latitudinal distribution ranges. Thus, squid and octopod species with larger hatchlings have latitudinal distributions of comparatively minor extension. This pattern also emerges when all species are grouped by genus (n = 41), but was not detected for cuttlefishes, a group composed mainly of species with large and benthic hatchlings. However, when hatchling size was compared to adult size, it was observed that the smaller the hatchlings, the broader the latitudinal distributional range of the species for cuttlefishes, squids and octopuses. This was also valid for all cephalopod species with benthic hatchlings pooled together. Hatchling size and associated developmental mode and dispersal potential seem to be main influential factors in determining the distributional range of cephalopodsFAFA was supported by a predoctoral fellowship (BES-2013-063551) of the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competiveness; URL: http://www.mineco.gob.es/portal/site/mineco?lang_choosen=en. EAGV was funded by the Brazilian National Research Council – Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (Grants no. 250017/2013-0; 207680/2014-0); URL: http://www.cnpq.br/. RV was funded by the Spanish Ministry of Education and Culture (Grant no. PRX15/00100); URL: http://www.mecd.gob.es/portada-mecd/ and by the Spanish Ministry of Economy and Competiveness (Grant no. AGL2012-39077, CALOCEAN-2); URL: http://www.mineco.gob.es/portal/site/mineco?lang_choosen=enPeer Reviewe

Corophiine amphipods of the genera Chelicorophium and Paracorophium from the lower Gulf of Thailand (Crustacea, Amphipoda, Corophiidae, Corophiinae)

Two species of corophiine amphipods from Songkhla Lake, in the lower Gulf of Thailand, are described and illustrated. Chelicorophium madrasensis (Nayar, 1950), found in the mangrove forest, has not previously been observed in Thai waters. Paracorophium angsupanichae sp. n. is characterized by its chelate male gnathopod 2, obtuse palm with subrectangular distomedial elevation, and urosomites 1-3 free. This is the first record of the genus Chelicorophium and Paracorophium in Thai waters. All specimens are deposited in the Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn Natural History Museum, Prince of Songkla University, Thailand and the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin