The turbot Psetta maeotica (Pallas, 1814) is a demersal species that populates the RomanianBlack Sea’s continental shelf and is an important segment of the regional fishing potential under theaspect of market demand, both on the national and international level. Being a migratory species (short,coast - perpendicular migrations, made for reproduction) it uses during its complete biological cyclevarious habitat types, among which we mention: reproduction habitats (coastal waters, down to 30meters depth), growing habitats (close to the sea bottom, down to 50-60 meters depth), winteringhabitats (close to the sea bottom, down to 60-80 meters depth). The turbot populates almost all thehabitat types present down to these depths, but it prefers the sandy and muddy ones, that are foundespecially in the Central and Northern part of Romanian littoral. The physical, chemical and biologicalcharacterization of these habitats revealed an improving tendency, that appeared on the bases ofeconomical activities restructuring, the growing of the exigencies in implementing the environmentalpolicies, the setting-up of marine protected areas and also the new reglementations regarding the marineresources exploitation.

turbot --- habitats --- environmental conditions

In this study, changes of average monthly values of the condition index of Mediterraneanmussel M. galloprovincialis were investigated at seven different locations in the area of Bay of MaliSton, in the period from November 2008 to December 2009, as well as their relationship with thevariation of monthly values of ecological parameters (salinity, temperature, total, organic and inorganicparticulate matter). Concentrations of organic and inorganic particulate matter had the highestinfluence on the condition index at all locations, what indicates the importance of food availability, butalso its usability that is influenced by the relation between the concentration of organic and inorganicparticulate matter. Mean monthly values of meat indices of mussels at all locations showed statisticallysignificant spatial and temporal variations. This fact indicates that it is necessary to investigatevariations of the meat quality at number different locations within the same geografical area. Thatshould be the way for the selection of the production locations within the larger farming areas, and forthe strategical organization of the production in order to prolong the market supply with the highquality product. A significant statistical difference was recorded by comparison of the mean monthlyvalues of meat indices with the regard to the dept (1 and 4 m) at different locations. The statisticallysignificant differences in the meat quality of the Mediterranean mussel at the same location at differentdepths determined during our research, represent a significant economical problem. Producers willhave harvest size mussels of different market quality at the same location and the same productionunit. This shows that there is a need for applying appropriate equipment and production methods.

mediterranean mussel --- condition index --- enviromental parameters --- meat quality --- temperature --- salinity

The objective of the present study was to evaluate the production trend of the depik (Rasboratawarensis) during the last two decades in Lake Laut Tawar. The production trend was examined basedon the catch per unit efforts. The direct sampling, fishermen catches collection and fishermen interviewwere conducted to collect actual fish catches. The results showed that the depik, R. tawarensisproduction (indicated by the catch-per-unit effort (CPUE)) was seasonally dependent where the CPUEwas higher in the rainy season compared to dry season. In addition, the CPUE was higher in the newmoon according to lunar cycle. The production of depik in particular and fishes of Lake Laut Tawar ingeneral are declining dramatically during the last two decades. The decrease in the water levels,destructive fishing gears, the presence of introduced species and pollution are the main reasonssuggested for this phenomenon.

CPUE --- endemic --- conservation --- dedeuseun --- Takengon --- Aceh Province

The acute toxic effects of a Nigerian crude oil (Bonny Light) to freshwater shrimp, DesmocarisTrispinosa were studied in toxicity bioassay. The test organisms were exposed to crude oil in a staticrenewal bioassay for 96 hrs. There was an initial range-finding test to determine the concentrations ofcrude oil to be administered on the test organisms in the definitive test. Five concentrations of the crudeoil were prepared in the definitive test as 40, 80, 160, 240 and 320 mgL^-1 and a control experiment (0mgL^-1). The median lethal concentration (LC₅₀) at 24-hr, 48-hr, 72-hr and 96-hr was 0, 0, 281.84 and120.23 mgL^-1 respectively. The median lethal time (LT₅₀) at crude oil concentrations of 160 mgL^-1, 240mgL^-1 and 320 mgL^-1 were 89.5hrs, 80.7hrs and 53.3hrs respectively while the LT₅₀ at concentrations of40 mgL^-1 and 80 mgL^-1 was 0hr. Mortality increased with increase in crude oil concentration and thedifference was significant (p<0.05). The present findings indicates that Bonny Light crude oil havemortality effects on D. trispinosa and may adversely affect other aquatic organisms.

Bioassay --- freshwater shrimp --- median lethal concentration --- median lethal time

The present study was conducted to know the impact of Sariakandi fish pass on fisheriesdiversity of Bangali river, Bogra, Bangladesh. Data were collected directly from fishermen, fish tradersand organizations related to this field. A total of 59 fin fish species and 9 non fin fishes were recorded inBangali river after construction of fish pass whereas the number was low before establishment of fishpass. Our results indicate that fish pass has positive impact on fisheries diversity of Bangali river atSariakandi Upazila, Bogra Bangladesh.

Fresh water ecosystem --- water development structure --- fisheries resources --- Bangladesh

Two gracilarioid species, Gracilariopsis bailiniae and Hydropuntia edulis, were comparedbased on their growth under different temperature and salinity levels and nitrogen source and on theirphotosynthetic responses under different irradiance levels. Results show that growth of Gp. bailiniaewas significantly higher than that of H. edulis. Both species were euryhaline and had optimum growthrates at 27˚C (16.06 % d^-1 ± 0.10 for Gp. bailiniae and 9.53 % d^-1 ± 0.62 for H. edulis) under bothammonium and nitrate enrichment. Gracilariopsis bailiniae was able to use both N-forms as a nitrogensource in all temperature and salinity levels tested. Meanwhile, the interactive effect of nitrogensource with temperature was observed for H. edulis with plants grown in nitrate enrichment showingsignificantly higher growth rates than those in ammonium. Nitrate enrichment also resulted to highergrowth rates for H. edulis in all salinity levels tested. Photosynthetic rates of Gp. bailiniae were higherthan H. edulis. We also found a two-fold difference between the maximum photosynthetic rate (P_max)of Gp. bailiniae (12.41 ± 1.81) and that of H. edulis (6.44 ± 0.62). However, photosynthetic efficiency(α) was significantly higher in H. edulis than in Gp. bailiniae while compensation and saturation pointirradiance levels were similar in both species.

Gracilaria spp. --- growth --- photosynthesis --- nitrogen source --- environmental factors

A study of the tilapia species (Perciformes: Cichlidae) of a tidal creek in the Southeast of theNiger Delta, Nigeria was conducted to assess the ecological impact of tidal pond channelization. Therewas no significant difference (p>0.05) in the values of the physical and chemical parameters, except fortransparency, water level and salinity (p<0.01). Orthogonal comparison using Duncan’s Multiple Rangetest showed that station 2 (the tidal pond channel) was the cause of the observed difference intransparency and water level. Two tilapia species comprising Sarotherodon melanotheron and Tilapia guineensis were recorded during the studies, with S. melanotheron being the dominant species.Orthogonal comparison using Duncan’s Multiple Range test showed that S. melanotheron was the causeof the observed difference in the tilapia population. Although there was positive correlation betweensalinity and the tilapia species at all stations, there was no significant correlation between tilapia speciesand the environmental variables. The findings of this study showed that channelized water bodies havelower qualify fish assemblage when compared to natural water bodies due to a loss of heterogeneoushabitat. Although channelization is inevitable in the development of brackishwater fish ponds,amelioration measures of its adverse effects deserve high priority. However since no significantdifference (p>0.05) existed in the distribution of T. guineensis, this study indicated that not all speciesare impacted by tidal pond channelization.

Sarotherodon melanotheron --- Tilapia guineensis --- physical and chemical parameters --- Niger Delta

The endangered Mexican fish, Zoogoneticus tequila Webb & Miller, 1998, represents a newchallenge for scientists: its biology, quite unknown, could perhaps explain the reason for its extremelylow consistency in natural environments. An experimental setting was prepared where four pairs ofyoung Z. tequila from the only Italian colony were bred in two different (biotope and enriched) tanks.Breeding results showed that the animals have grown and presented a positive reproductiveperformance, in both the environmental conditions confirming that the choice of substrata, of thevegetable layout, of food administration and of breeding of fry, resulted optimal for the indoor breeding.Aggressive behavior was extremely low and, although inter-male interactions were unstable, no injurieswere observed among the animals, apart from a few episode of cannibalism towards the young. Thebehavior of animals in stressful situation were also recorded, namely the encounter with a maledisplaying enhanced sexual characters or with a predator. The behavioral responses toward the malewere mainly noticed in the enriched tank, where flicks of tail and display of fins were recorded comparedto the biotope. On the other hand, the predator snake Thamnophis sp. elicited an innate flight responsein both the experimental conditions and in both genders. All together those results seem to encouragethe breeding of Z. tequila in captive condition, although more studies on the cognitive skills of thespecies are needed before its reintroduction in natural environment.

Zoogoneticus tequila --- conservation biology --- Goodeid Working Group

The non-steroidal anti inflammatory drugs represent one of the most commonly detectedcompounds in sewage treatment plant (STP) effluent and surface water with scarce informationconcerning possible ecotoxicological risks. As in mammals, COX has been shown to play a role inreproduction in fish. Since studies on human breast cancer cells showed that COXs-inhibitors decreasedaromatase messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) expression at the transcriptional level we tested theeffects of supplementation of COX2-inhibitors (etodolac and etoricoxib) in the diet of fry tilapia on growthrate and mortality during the crucial period of sexual differentiation. Highlight on etoricoxibpharmacokinetics was carried out by determination of etoricoxib in fish feces using reversed-phase HighPerformance Liquid Chromatography (RF-HPLC) with Evaporative Light Scattering and Photo Diode arraydetector (ELSD-PDA system). At an age of 8 days post-hatched, 30 genetically mixed population ofOreochromis niloticus larvae were stocked in duplicate, into 45 L aquariums in a closed system for sixmonths. Treatments included 5 different experimental diets including, respectively, 0.5% etodolac, 1%etodolac, 2% etodolac, 0.5% etoricoxib, and 1% etoricoxib concentrations and one standard diet servingas control with two repeats for each group from 0.5% groups of diets. Fish were fed experimental dietsfor 8 weeks and were changed to control diet after. Another experiment was conducted using 10 adultsmixed population stocked in triplicate in a closed system and treated as above. Growth rates (GR) weresignificantly affected with the highest growth rate obtained with the 0.5% etodolac. However, noincrease or decrease in growth was observed in mixed adults population. GR increased with increasingconcentrations with the highest GR in the aquarium treated with 2% etodolac, followed by 1% etodolac,but 1% etoricoxib showed a decreased GR compared to standard which could indicates a toxic potentialtoward fish at this concentration. No etoricoxib peak was detected on HPLC in feces samples whichreflected, that, it was well absorbed by tilapias, extensively metabolized with no unchanged fractionexcreted, or may undergo enter hepatic circulation, increasing further its toxic potential. No mortalitywas observed in adults mixed population. Mortality rates were 3.7% with 0.5% etodolac, 10% with 0.5%etoricoxib, 30% with 1% etodolac, 37%with 1%etoricoxib, and 50% with 2% etodolac treatments,respectively. It is clear evident that even administration of high concentrations of these drugs was welltolerated by fish.

Etodolac --- etoricoxib --- COX2-inhibitors --- growth rates --- mortality