Effects of Staining and Streamer Tags on Survival and Growth of Juvenile School Prawns, Metapenaeus macleayi, Under Laboratory Conditions

• Main Authors: C.T. WALSH, S.S. MONTGOMERY, D.D. REID, J.R. MCLEOD
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Asian Fisheries Society 2007-11-01
• Series: Asian Fisheries Science
• Online Access: https://www.asianfisheriessociety.org/publication/downloadfile.php?id=347&file=Y0dSbUx6QXlOVEUzT0Rrd01ERXpOVFU0TURjMU16WXVjR1Jt

Juvenile school prawns from two size classes (carapace length 11-20mm and 21- 30mm) were marked with a stain (fast green FCF solution) or tagged with steamer tags under laboratory conditions to test the hypothesis that tagging or marking affects the survival and/or growth of prawns. The stain accumulated in all parts of the prawn, but after 14 days it was visible only in the gills. All surviving tagged prawns at the end of each experiment had their streamer tags intact with tag information still visible. Tagging and staining significantly reduced survival, but there was no significant difference in mortality (40-50%) between these two techniques. Mortality was at its highest for all treatments in the first week of the experiments, reflecting the stress associated with handling the prawn and applying the tag or stain. Mortality was not size- or sex-dependent and marking or tagging did not appear to affect growth. While the low survival rates are of concern, this laboratory study suggests that streamer tags are the most suitable method for use in mark-recapture population studies for juvenile school prawns.