A research team led by National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium assistant researcher Leu Ming-yih (呂明毅) has provided the first comprehensive account of natural spawning of Chaetodontoplus meridithii, or Queensland yellowtail angelfish, in an artificial environment.
The study was published in the international journal Aquaculture Reports last month.
C meridithii is a marine ornamental species endemic to subtropical waters in Australia’s Queensland area. Its vibrant colors and graceful movements make it a popular choice among aquarium hobbyists.
Photo: Tsai Tsung-hsien, Taipei Times
Because technology has been unsuccessful in artificially reproducing the species, most of the Queensland yellowtail angelfish on the market are brought in from the wild and command a steep price of US$500 (NT$15,798) each.
About 2 million of the species are captured in the wild per year for sale in the ornamental fish market, placing signicant stress on the ecology of local coral reefs, the museum said.
Queensland yellowtail angelfish are “not easy to handle,” as they are very territorial and would often refuse to mate, museum Director Wen Chih-hung (溫志宏) said.
The species is also highly selective in its spawning environment, and it was challenging to provide a stable supply of natural feed for the fry, he said.
The team observed a captive adult pair from August 2018 to September 2019 that exhibited year-round spawning, producing 161 spawns over 426 days, the study said.
They observed that rising water temperatures tended to increase spawning frequency, whereas salinity and lunar phases showed no significant correlations, it said.
“Water quality conditions that resulted in the highest hatch rate and survival activity indices (SAI) were determined to be a salinity of 33 psu [practical salinity unit] and a temperature of 27°C,” it said.
The latest findings “expand understanding of Queensland yellowtail angelfish reproduction, supporting captive breeding, larval rearing, sustainable aquaculture and efforts to mitigate overfishing from the marine ornamental trade,” it added.
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