Spanish scientists close the shi drum life cycle

摘要

The shi drum (Umbrina cirrosa) is a member of the Sciaenidae family (drums and croakers). Its natural range covers the Eastern Atlantic from the Bay of Biscay to Senegal, and the Mediterranean and the Black Seas. It is consumed regularly in Turkey, Morocco, Greece and Cyprus, and elsewhere throughout its range. It has a good growth rate and can reach a mean body weight of 700g in 15 months. Thus it is a promising candidate species for aquaculture in the Mediterranean because of its high market valueand adaptability to culture conditions.In Spain, spawning shi drum in captivity was achieved for the first time in 2009 at the Centro Oceanografico de Murcia, using hormonal induction; and until now research on shi drum reproduction in captivity has used hormonal treatment exclusively. However, at the Aquaculture Europe conference held last fall in San Sebastian, Spain, Marta Arizcun, from the Centro Oceanografico de Murcia, reported work with her colleagues, A. Garcia-Alcazar and E. Abellan, that yielded the first natural spawning by shi drum bred and raised in captivity, without any hormonal stimulant, thus convincingly closing the species' life cycle.