Abstract
Swimming efficiency and growth of anchor-tagged red drum (Sciaenops ocellatus) juveniles were compared with untagged controls. The O2 consumption of fish swimming at different speeds was measured in a Blazka-type respirometer. Daily growth rates of tagged and untagged red drum were compared over 42 d of feeding fixed rations of live mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) to siblings held individually in 380 L tanks. At swimming speeds of ≤ 1.0 body lengths per second (bl s-1), no differences in O2 consumption were found. However, at speeds of 1.5-2.5 bl s-1, tagged red drum O2 consumption was significantly greater (by 36-39%) than that of untagged fish (ANOVA, P<0.05), indicating a substantially impaired swimming efficiency. Daily growth rates of tagged and untagged fish also differed significantly (P < 0.02). Tagged fish grew at a mean rate of 0.95 mm d-1 and 1.45 g d-1, while untagged fish (controls) grew at 1.14 mm and 1.62 g d-1. Results suggest that internal anchor tags, which weighed less than 1% offish body weight, represented a hydrodynamic drag burden that reduced swimming performance and growth. These effects may decrease growth and/or survival in the wild and thus bias estimates of biological parameters in stock assessment and enhancement studies.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 29-35 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| Journal | Marine and Freshwater Behaviour and Physiology |
| Volume | 27 |
| Issue number | 1 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 1 1995 |
Keywords
- Sciaenops ocellat
- Tags
- growth
- swimming performance
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Oceanography
- Physiology
- Aquatic Science