Reproduction trials between wild and farmed salmon

Description

There is a concern that a decline in wild salmon recreational fishery catch and abundance is correlated to the introduction of salmon farms, and this still raises a number of questions. The finding that impacts of salmon farming on wild salmon do not increase linearly with the tonnage of farmed salmon (Ford and Myers, 2008) highlights the need for a better understanding of the situation. In particular, in Newfoundland, the introduction of farmed salmon originally from the Saint John River strain in the Bay d'Espoir area raises the question of potential impact of escapes on wild stocks. This project aims to answer the question of the potential mating success between farmed mature fish and wild spawners from Conne river stocks. Fertilization rates and gamete quality will be assessed in both farmed and wild mature fish and crosses (including hybrids) will be completed to evaluate fertilization and hatch rates. The effect of the water quality (river waters) will be tested to better understand the potential reproductive impact of salmon escapes from local farms on wild spawners in their natural environment.

Program Name

Aquaculture Collaborative Research and Development Program (ACRDP)

Year(s)

2010 - 2012

Ecoregion(s)

Atlantic: Newfoundland, Labrador Shelves

Principal Investigator(s)

Dounia Hamoutene
Email: Dounia.Hamoutene@dfo-mpo.gc.ca