Critical swimming speed in groups of Atlantic salmon Salmo salar

Critical swimming speed (U crit) has traditionally been measured in relatively small swimming tunnels with 1 fish alone. However, both increased flume lengths and swimming in groups are known to improve performance. Atlantic salmon Salmo salar farming is currently expanding to more exposed locations...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Aquaculture Environment Interactions 2016-01, Vol.8, p.659-664
Main Authors: Remen, Mette, Solstorm, Frida, Bui, Samantha, Klebert, Pascal, Vågseth, Tone, Solstorm, David, Hvas, Malthe, Oppedal, Frode
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Fish culture
Fisheries science
Flumes
Mariculture
Marine fishes
Ocean currents
Ocean fisheries
Salmon
Seas
Water currents
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Summary:Critical swimming speed (U crit) has traditionally been measured in relatively small swimming tunnels with 1 fish alone. However, both increased flume lengths and swimming in groups are known to improve performance. Atlantic salmon Salmo salar farming is currently expanding to more exposed locations, which necessitates guidelines for limits in water current peak velocity to secure animal welfare. A large swim tunnel system was therefore developed which allowed for swimming trials at relevant stocking densities of Atlantic salmon comparable to the conditions in exposed sea cages. U crit was measured in groups of 3 size classes (small post-smolts, large post-smolts, adults) in this new swim tunnel and compared to measurements from individual fish in a smaller swim tunnel. U crit (in cm s⁻¹) increased with size and was significantly lower in the smaller setup. Our results suggest that U crit can be used as a maximum current velocity tolerance threshold in exposed aquaculture, where longer periods above this value would be detrimental to the welfare and physiological function of the fish. This study represents a starting point in obtaining suitable current velocity profiles for farmed Atlantic salmon during the on-growing phase in sea cages.
ISSN:1869-215X
1869-7534
DOI:10.3354/aei00207