Comparisons between fresh- and seawater critical thermal maximum (CTmax), and seawater CTmax and incremental thermal maximum (ITmax), for individual farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)
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Date
2023-12
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University of New Brunswick
Abstract
Atlantic salmon is an important aquaculture species farmed in ocean net-pens experiencing changing environmental temperatures, creating a need for research on their thermal tolerance. I investigated this by assessing the predictability of an individual’s seawater critical thermal maximum (CTmax) from previous freshwater CTmax (Chapter 2), and of seawater incremental thermal maximum (ITmax) from previous seawater CTmax (Chapter 3), using tagged Atlantic salmon. I measured various physiological metrics (body mass, fork length, condition factor, blood hemoglobin, hematocrit, and absolute and relative ventricle mass) to determine their relationship with thermal tolerance. I found no relationship between an individual’s initial and second thermal tolerance test in either experiment. Although there were significant relationships between some of the health metrics and thermal tolerance, mixed results from my study and the literature suggest that more research is required. Considering the scarcity of ITmax testing in the fish physiology field, further ITmax exploration should be completed.
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FORESTRY, AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES and LANDSCAPE PLANNING::Animal production::Aquaculture