Crustacean Health Abstracts

HOST SUSCEPTIBILITY AS A PRIMARY DRIVER OF SHELL DISEASE

Michael Tlusty,
​New England Aquarium


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Anyone who has tried to exhibit crustaceans has noticed at some point, black spots and possibly even lesions will appear on the shell, a condition known as shell disease. At best, it looks bad from an exhibit standpoint. At worst, it can cause mortality. Any disease is caused by a triad of factors - a viable pathogen exists in the right environment in the presence of a susceptible host. Many aquatic pathogens such as those causing shell disease, are bacterial, and are always present to some extent in exhibits. The exhibits, ideally (from the aquarist's point of view) remain constant. Therefore, with two factors remaining constant, disease events such as shell disease cycle as a result of changes in the susceptibility of the host. To understand shell disease better, our laboratory has intentionally stressed American lobsters to increase their susceptibility. Through this method, we can intentionally cause shell disease, and allows us to look at patterns of infection. Once the lobster has shell disease, we can then figure out how to get them to be less susceptible. Poor nutrition is one of the easiest ways to make lobsters susceptible, and this talk I will link the science of shell disease to some best practices for exhibiting crustacean to keep them healthy and looking good.

COLLABORATIVE MARINE ORNAMENTAL FISH PROPAGATION EFFORTS

Allan Marshall,
​The Florida Aquarium


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The Rising Tide Conservation initiative began as an idea to breed marine ornamental fishes for both public aquaria and the aquarium hobby. The many challenges associated with successfully breeding and rearing many marine ornamental fish has kept most single institutions and research facilities from realizing these goals. A collaborative effort was developed between eight AZA facilities and the University of Florida's Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory (TAL) to collect viable eggs from sexually mature fishes currently in large public aquarium exhibits. Eggs were collected using specially designed floating baskets and then shipped overnight to TAL. Scientists Dr. Eric Cassiano and Matt Wittenrich acclimated and hatched the eggs and developed the methodologies for first feeding and raising of the fry. The successes derived from this collaboration have been many, yet have led to more questions which are now being researched. It is the intention that this program be continued and that more AZA facilities will join the collaborative efforts to reduce the capture of wild fishes for aquariums.