Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0237912
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$200,000.00
Summary
Acoustic tracking key marine species in Tasmania using new technology. We will use new passive listening receivers and uniquely indentifiable acoustic tags to track key marine species (squid, octopus, fish and crustaceans) in Tasmania. This technology allows us to remotely track species with a level of detail previously not available. By using a large number of receivers we will build listening 'curtains'. A series of curtains will then form a multi-species listening grid. This equipment wi ....Acoustic tracking key marine species in Tasmania using new technology. We will use new passive listening receivers and uniquely indentifiable acoustic tags to track key marine species (squid, octopus, fish and crustaceans) in Tasmania. This technology allows us to remotely track species with a level of detail previously not available. By using a large number of receivers we will build listening 'curtains'. A series of curtains will then form a multi-species listening grid. This equipment will allow us to reconstruct movement between habitats, and migration routes to better understand and manage this marine ecosystem. An important feature will involve monitoring organism movements into and out of marine protected areas.Read moreRead less
Objectives: 1. Collate data on contaminants in crustaceans for use in a submission to the National Food Authority to review the maximum permitted concentration of cadmium in crustaceans 2. Provide early warning and background information to industry and relevant government agencies on potential contaminant problems in crustaceans 3. Investigate seasonal variation in concentrations of cadmium as basis for possible catch-time management of some species of prawn
Industrial Transformation Research Hubs - Grant ID: IH130200013
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$4,979,922.00
Summary
ARC Research Hub for advanced breeding to transform prawn aquaculture. ARC Research Hub for advanced breeding to transform prawn aquaculture. This Research Hub aims to bring together world-leading animal geneticists, research and service providers, and Australia's largest prawn farm to gather the genomic resources, commercial phenotypic data, and apply cutting-edge genetic and genomic selection methodologies, leading to the transformative improvement program for a black tiger prawn aquaculture s ....ARC Research Hub for advanced breeding to transform prawn aquaculture. ARC Research Hub for advanced breeding to transform prawn aquaculture. This Research Hub aims to bring together world-leading animal geneticists, research and service providers, and Australia's largest prawn farm to gather the genomic resources, commercial phenotypic data, and apply cutting-edge genetic and genomic selection methodologies, leading to the transformative improvement program for a black tiger prawn aquaculture species globally.Read moreRead less
Developing A Management Procedure Based Recovery Plan For Southern Bluefin Tuna
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$160,000.00
Summary
There is an immediate and strategic need for the CCSBT to agree to an MP to guide the global catch setting to ensure the rebuilding of the SBT stock. For this to occur, an MP needs to be developed and agreed by the CCSBT; failure to do so will result in the global catch of SBT being reduced to 5000-6000 t, with a subsequent significant impact on the Australian SBT fishery. Australia in collaboration with Japanese and other CCSBT member scientists are responsible for the development and evaluatio ....There is an immediate and strategic need for the CCSBT to agree to an MP to guide the global catch setting to ensure the rebuilding of the SBT stock. For this to occur, an MP needs to be developed and agreed by the CCSBT; failure to do so will result in the global catch of SBT being reduced to 5000-6000 t, with a subsequent significant impact on the Australian SBT fishery. Australia in collaboration with Japanese and other CCSBT member scientists are responsible for the development and evaluation of the MP, which in the context of a Regional Fisheries Management Organisation (RFMO), such as CCSBT, is a unique and innovative concept that will establish a rebuilding pathway for the stock. Having a rebuilding strategy that has been rigorously and openly tested, is robust to the key fishery-specific issues and uncertainties, and establishes a process whereby decisions will be made and enforced will be a first in the tuna RFMO milieu.
As an effective recovery plan for SBT can only exist at the international level (given the shared nature of the resource) the development and adoption of the MP work can also be interpreted as a direct requirement of the current conservation dependent status of the stock. It is therefore essential to complete the MP development work for adoption by the Commission in 2011.
Objectives: 1. Development of candidate management procedures, within the CCSBT international collaborative scientific structure, to guide the recovery of Southern bluefin tuna 2. Define and compute a set of reference points for evaluating the performance of the MPs and the risk status of the stock that are consistent with both the rebuilding criteria and the underlying models used to evaluate the MPs themselves Read moreRead less
People Development Program: 2013 Visiting Expert Bursary - Dr Raouf Kalida
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$7,940.00
Summary
Crustacean fisheries (such as those targeting rock losters, crabs and prawns) contribute more than a billion dollars to the Australian economy annually. Population models for stocks that support these fisheries often rely on indirect measures of age (e.g. size-modal analysis) which can confound estimates of other life history parameters and introduce errors into the modelling process.
A method to directly age commercially exploited crustaceans (by counting growth bands in calcified reg ....Crustacean fisheries (such as those targeting rock losters, crabs and prawns) contribute more than a billion dollars to the Australian economy annually. Population models for stocks that support these fisheries often rely on indirect measures of age (e.g. size-modal analysis) which can confound estimates of other life history parameters and introduce errors into the modelling process.
A method to directly age commercially exploited crustaceans (by counting growth bands in calcified regions of the eyestalk and/or the gastric mill) has been developed by Dr Raouf Kalida at the University of New Brunswick, Canada and published last year. His technique has the potential to substantially improve the precision of stock assessments on crustacean fisheries around the world.
There is a need to transfer this technology to fisheries research agencies in Australia so that we can better understand growth patterns in crustaceans, reduce uncertainty in crustacean population models and provide better advice to fishery managers. This in turn should lead to improved management practices and greater stability in the national crustacean harvest, noting that production by several crustacean fisheries is also strongly linked to environmental factors.
The most effective means to address this need is to host Dr Kalida in Australia for a period of time to share his knowledge of crustacean ageing and provide guidance to domestic fisheries scientists working in the field. The proposed project aligns with a number of FRDC Strategic Priority Areas including: Theme 4 (Ecologically Sustainable Development), Theme 13 (Innovation Skills) and Theme 14 (Extension and Adoption). Objectives: 1. Transfer knowledge regarding crustacean ageing techniques to Australian fisheries scientists 2. Provide this group with practical experience in crustacean ageing techniques 3. Facilitate the exchange of ideas between fisheries scientists Read moreRead less
Tasmanian Fisheries And Aquaculture Research And Development Plan 2003-2005
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$20,000.00
Summary
The 3 Year fisheries and aquaculture R&D plan is needed to: 1. Achieve economic, environmental and social objectives (see 7 above) 2. Enable key stakeholder R&D needs to be addressed. 3. Enable priorities to be identified for targeting limited resources. 4. Enable R&D resources to be aligned to (2) and (3) above. Objectives: 1. To increase economic, environmental and social benefits 2. To achieve sustainable use and management of natural resources 3. ....The 3 Year fisheries and aquaculture R&D plan is needed to: 1. Achieve economic, environmental and social objectives (see 7 above) 2. Enable key stakeholder R&D needs to be addressed. 3. Enable priorities to be identified for targeting limited resources. 4. Enable R&D resources to be aligned to (2) and (3) above. Objectives: 1. To increase economic, environmental and social benefits 2. To achieve sustainable use and management of natural resources 3. To develop and more effectively use human resources and skills 4. Improve effectiveness, efficiency and accountability for expenditure Read moreRead less
SSA Core Membership Of The Australian Food Safety Centre Of Excellence
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$30,000.00
Summary
The rapidly changing global trading environment is placing increasing demands on Australia's seafood industry to demonstrate that their product is safe and that it will not cause illness now or in the future. Meeting these demand means that seafood businesses need to understand and manage the food safety risks associated with their products and processes. Changes to the natural environment, including through increased pollution of the marine environment has resulted in new an ....The rapidly changing global trading environment is placing increasing demands on Australia's seafood industry to demonstrate that their product is safe and that it will not cause illness now or in the future. Meeting these demand means that seafood businesses need to understand and manage the food safety risks associated with their products and processes. Changes to the natural environment, including through increased pollution of the marine environment has resulted in new and emerging food safety issues that need to be better understood to enable them to be managed. Development of new products and processes designed to increase shelf life and improve convenience to the consumers also pose food safety management challenges Meeting these needs individually would require significant investment. Tapping into a global network of experts and undertaking research as part of a national food industry dvelopment effort will leverage investment into these areas. Objectives: 1. As a Core Member of the Australian Food Safety Centre of Excellence, help build the Australian seafood industry's capacity to produce safe and high quality foods that meets market requirements, underpin standards development and risk communication, and innovate in food safety management practices 2. As a Core Member of the Australian Food Safety Centre of Excellence, influence the direction of food safety research and development that benefits the seafood industry 3. As a Core Member of the Australian Food Safety Centre of Excellence gain fast access to information and advice about emerging food safety issues and options for management Read moreRead less
Aquatic Animal Health Subprogram: Development Of Stable Positive Control Material And Development Of Internal Controls For Molecular Tests For Detection Of Important Endemic And Exotic Pathogens
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$172,185.00
Summary
Quality assured positive control material is critical to demonstrate an assay has performed as expected. Similarly, testing for internal control material ensures extraction procedures produced template of acceptable quality, free of test inhibitors. Both types of controls are particularly important where the samples are being tested to demonstrate freedom from disease (i.e. are negative).
One internal control target is the 18S ribosomal RNA gene. However, assays targeting 18S need to b ....Quality assured positive control material is critical to demonstrate an assay has performed as expected. Similarly, testing for internal control material ensures extraction procedures produced template of acceptable quality, free of test inhibitors. Both types of controls are particularly important where the samples are being tested to demonstrate freedom from disease (i.e. are negative).
One internal control target is the 18S ribosomal RNA gene. However, assays targeting 18S need to be optimised if multiplexed, 18S is ubiquitous (negative control reactions can test positive) and 18S is not applicable for crustacean samples. Other targets include genes of the host organism, which are often limited to a single species, and are an option that will be investigated for priority species. Plant viruses enable development of one internal control assay for RNA and one for DNA. Optimisation of each assay would still be required if multiplexed, one internal control and one set of primers/probe for any assay reduces costs, eliminates 18S contamination issues and is applicable for all hosts (i.e. finfish, mollusc, crustacean).
Synthetic RNA and plasmid DNA positive controls enable accurate quantification of targets, control over the level of positive template (i.e. added at levels approaching the limits of detection of the assay), are consistent and greatly aid troubleshooting when contamination occurs. They also eliminate the need to source infected animals for positive control material. AFDL implements OIE, EU and/or ANZSDPs for diagnostic assays, reducing the risk of test changes requiring redevelopment of positive controls, which are limitations of synthetic and plasmid controls.
Objectives: 1. Produce quantified synthetic RNA positive control material for conventional and real-time RT-PCR assays, available on request. 2. Produce quantified plasmid DNA positive control material for conventional and real-time PCR assays, available on request. 3. Optimised universal internal control based on plant viral RNA and DNA and/or species-specific genes for use in molecular assays developed and implemented 4. Technology transferred and adopted by participating laboratories. Read moreRead less
Minimising Gear Conflict And Resource Sharing Issues In The Shark Bay Trawl Fisheries And Promotion Of Scallop Recruitment
Funder
Fisheries Research and Development Corporation
Funding Amount
$845,578.00
Summary
There is an urgent need to develop an understanding of the level of gear interaction between the prawn and scallop sectors and whether this may be a cause for the recent low scallop recruitment (and subsequent catches) in the fishery and if scallop fishing negatively impacts on prawns. This urgency was noted at a recent workshop reviewing the research and management needs in the Shark Bay trawl fisheries. Both sectors (prawn and scallop) support the need to fully and rigorously address the iss ....There is an urgent need to develop an understanding of the level of gear interaction between the prawn and scallop sectors and whether this may be a cause for the recent low scallop recruitment (and subsequent catches) in the fishery and if scallop fishing negatively impacts on prawns. This urgency was noted at a recent workshop reviewing the research and management needs in the Shark Bay trawl fisheries. Both sectors (prawn and scallop) support the need to fully and rigorously address the issue of gear interactions in those areas of the fishery where the distribution of the target species overlap. Scallop fishers are concerned that repeated trawling by the prawn fleet on scallop grounds may be affecting scallop recruitment. The use of adaptive management techniques such as trialling spatial closures within specific areas of the scallop fishery will provide key information about the usefulness of this management approach for the short-lived and sedentary scallop species Amusium balloti and to assess the impact of the closures on the capture of migrating prawns. This project will be used as a pilot study to assess whether closures can assist increase scallop recruitment and if area closures could be used as a possible management strategy in the future. Completion of this project should therefore result in information required to help optimise the use of these resources and assist in resolving the resource sharing conflicts between sectors within the region.
Developing specific models of water and scallop larval movements within Shark Bay along with an assessment of the relevant environmental variables (eg. SST) would also provide insights into the potential causes of the relatively low level of scallop recruitment in areas that were traditionally reliable scallop grounds. Objectives: 1. To determine size specific recapture mortality rates of Amusium balloti as a result of repeated capture and release experiments and gear impacts on newly recruited (juvenile) scallops. 2. To examine the impacts of various scallop mesh sizes for the capture of the target size of Amusium balloti and its impact on damage to and retention of prawns. 3. To investigate if small-scale spatial closures assist recruitment of Amusium balloti by reducing gear impacts and capture mortality but without affecting overall prawn catches. 4. To examine whether existing hydrodynamic models can guide the selection of spatial closures and to investigate the larval transport mechanisms of both prawn and scallop larvae in Shark Bay. Read moreRead less