It’s a catfish! Novel approaches are needed to study the effects of rapid decompression on benthic species

Journal Article · Thu Nov 29 00:00:00 EST 2018 · Marine and Freshwater Research

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1071/MF18267· OSTI ID:1575425

Do Vale Beirao, Bernardo ^[1]; Silva, Luiz G. ^[2]; Falcao, Ricardo ^[2]; Castro, Andrey ^[2]; Dias, Edson ^[2]

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1. BATTELLE (PACIFIC NW LAB)
2. Universidade Federal de Sao Joao del-Rei

Barotrauma due to rapid decompression has been recorded as the most common injury among fish captured in the tailrace of hydropower dams in Brazil, with catfishes representing the majority of them. Nevertheless, studies investigating barotrauma on catfish are scarce, with the majority determining dose-response curves and thresholds of pressure changes for nektonic species as salmonids. Experiments conducted with Pimelodus pictus showed that the current hypo-hyperbaric chambers used to study barotrauma in nektonic species have limitations when applied to benthic groups. The negative buoyancy showed by the catfish prevent the definition of the acclimation pressure of the fish prior to exposure to decompression and, therefore, hinder calculation of the ratio of pressure change (RPC). RPC has been considered the main factor explaining the likelihood of barotrauma on fish. Since its calculation is restricted for benthic species, new approaches deemed to be needed to complement barotrauma studies with this group. We aimed to discuss the limitations observed for studies with benthonic species and present potential methods to overcome them. The diversification of approaches for barotrauma studies with benthonic species is critical to provide information for the development of mitigation and new turbine designs that would improve protection of this group.

• Research Organization: Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)
• Sponsoring Organization: USDOE
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-76RL01830
• OSTI ID: 1575425
• Report Number(s): PNNL-SA-136216
• Journal Information: Marine and Freshwater Research, Vol. 69, Issue 12
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English