Summer Is Coming! Tackling Ocean Warming in Atlantic Salmon Cage Farming

Abstract

Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) cage farming has traditionally been located at higher latitudes where cold seawater temperatures favor this practice. However, these regions can be impacted by ocean warming and heat waves that push seawater temperature beyond the thermo-tolerance limits of this species. As more mass mortality events are reported every year due to abnormal sea temperatures, the Atlantic salmon cage aquaculture industry acknowledges the need to adapt to a changing ocean. This paper reviews adult Atlantic salmon thermal tolerance limits, as well as the deleterious eco-physiological consequences of heat stress, with emphasis on how it negatively affects sea cage aquaculture production cycles. Biotechnological solutions targeting the phenotypic plasticity of Atlantic salmon and its genetic diversity, particularly that of its southernmost populations at the limit of its natural zoogeographic distribution, are discussed. Some of these solutions include selective breeding programs, which may play a key role in this quest for a more thermo-tolerant strain of Atlantic salmon that may help the cage aquaculture industry to adapt to climate uncertainties more rapidly, without compromising profitability. Omics technologies and precision breeding, along with cryopreservation breakthroughs, are also part of the available toolbox that includes other solutions that can allow cage farmers to continue to produce Atlantic salmon in the warmer waters of the oceans of tomorrow.

RETRACTED: Advantage of Species Diversification to Facilitate Sustainable Development of Aquaculture Sector

“…However, such cages require an extra financial investment, but this investment can be reduced by using some types of cages that can be assembled with inexpensive materials such as polyester or polyvinyl chloride and plastic nets. Extreme temperatures in certain regions at the peak of summer make the cage system unsuitable; otherwise, the height of the cages should be adjusted during the day and at night with optimal levels of oxygen [193]. or more of the species are reared within cage systems, thus limiting their physical contact and space with the main species farmed [192].…”

“…However, such cages require an extra financial investment, but this investment can be reduced by using some types of cages that can be assembled with inexpensive materials such as polyester or polyvinyl chloride and plastic nets. Extreme temperatures in certain regions at the peak of summer make the cage system unsuitable; otherwise, the height of the cages should be adjusted during the day and at night with optimal levels of oxygen [193]. The spatially sequential polyculture method involves the integration of aquaculture systems, wherein main and secondary or subordinate species are farmed separately by setting adjacent units, and waste effluents flow from the shrimp system to other culture units made for secondary species (Figure 5c).…”

Aerobic Exercise Training With Optimal Intensity Increases Cardiac Thermal Tolerance in Juvenile Rainbow Trout

“…Due to this rising demand in fish consumption, the aquaculture industry, especially with regard to salmonids species, is facing several challenges (Ahmed et al, 2019), including emerging diseases (Pulkkinen et al, 2010), lack of genetic diversity, low survival rates (Skaala et al, 2019) and low robustness of fish to respond environmental stressors (Castro et al, 2011;Zhang et al, 2016). Furthermore, the aquaculture sector is expected to be significantly affected by anthropogenic climate change which may lead to suboptimal rearing conditions, that further challenge aquaculture production (Blanchard et al, 2017;Barange et al, 2018;Reid et al, 2019;Collins et al, 2020;Calado et al, 2021;Maulu et al, 2021;Oyinlola et al, 2022). Heat waves are, for instance, causing massive mortality events in aquaculture as the fish cannot escape the rapidly warming waters (Froehlich et al, 2018;Wade et al, 2019;FAO, 2020;Gamperl et al, 2021).…”

Metabolic scope, performance and tolerance of juvenile European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax upon acclimation to high temperatures

“…It is likely that the animals used in this study differ in their thermal capacity compared to those of Western Mediterranean or Atlantic origin and it would, therefore, be interesting to study the thermal responses of different populations comparatively in the future. In turn, this may contribute to assisted evolution efforts in E. sea bass through breeding, conditioning, and epigenetic programs which aim to improve the thermal tolerance traits of the fish and have been recognized as indispensable tools for mitigating the effects of climate change [77]. Admittedly, CT max is sensitive to the protocol used since it is a time-dependent tolerance measurement and caution should be exercised for comparison between studies [78].…”