Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries最新文献

{"title":"Unveiling Gender Inequities in Small-Scale Fisheries and Aquaculture in East Africa: a Harvard Analytical Framework Approach","authors":"Kevin Okoth Ouko,&nbsp;Cherine Lando Yugi,&nbsp;Modock Odiwuor Oketch,&nbsp;Lucy Njogu,&nbsp;Jimmy Brian Mboya,&nbsp;Robert John Ogola,&nbsp;Danstone Aboge,&nbsp;Mavindu Muthoka,&nbsp;Dick Chune Midamba","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70210","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Small-scale fisheries and aquaculture constitute critical pillars of food security, livelihoods, and rural economies across East Africa, yet persistent gendered inequalities continue to constrain both equity and sectoral performance. This study provides a synthesis of empirical evidence from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania to examine how structural, institutional, and socio-cultural processes reproduce gender disparities across fisheries and aquaculture value chains. Drawing on a narrative review of peer reviewed and grey literature published between 2015 and 2025, the analysis applies the Harvard Analytical Framework (HAF) to interrogate four interrelated dimensions: Division of labour, access to and control over productive resources, influencing institutional and normative factors, and gender integration within project cycles.</p><p>The findings indicate that gender inequalities are most pronounced in asset ownership, decision making authority, and benefit distribution rather than participation alone. Women remain concentrated in labour intensive and lower value post-harvest activities, while men dominate harvesting, aquaculture production, licensing systems, and leadership positions within co management institutions. Across the three countries, men retain control over the majority of productive assets, including boats, fishing gear, land, and aquaculture infrastructure, while women's access to credit, extension services, and modern technologies remains constrained. These disparities are reinforced by inheritance regimes, gender norms, and male dominated governance structures that shape access to resources and control over income. Development interventions frequently expand women's participation without addressing underlying structural constraints, thereby contributing to the reproduction of institutional inequalities.</p><p>By linking structural analysis to policy relevant pathways, the study argues that inclusive blue economy development requires tenure reform, gender responsive financing mechanisms, institutional restructuring, and sustained normative change. The review positions gender equity as a governance and productivity imperative and provides an evidence based foundation for advancing resilient and inclusive fisheries and aquaculture systems in East Africa.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70210","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147567132","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Unveiling Gender Inequities in Small-Scale Fisheries and Aquaculture in East Africa: a Harvard Analytical Framework Approach","authors":"Kevin Okoth Ouko,&nbsp;Cherine Lando Yugi,&nbsp;Modock Odiwuor Oketch,&nbsp;Lucy Njogu,&nbsp;Jimmy Brian Mboya,&nbsp;Robert John Ogola,&nbsp;Danstone Aboge,&nbsp;Mavindu Muthoka,&nbsp;Dick Chune Midamba","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70210","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70210","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Small-scale fisheries and aquaculture constitute critical pillars of food security, livelihoods, and rural economies across East Africa, yet persistent gendered inequalities continue to constrain both equity and sectoral performance. This study provides a synthesis of empirical evidence from Kenya, Uganda, and Tanzania to examine how structural, institutional, and socio-cultural processes reproduce gender disparities across fisheries and aquaculture value chains. Drawing on a narrative review of peer reviewed and grey literature published between 2015 and 2025, the analysis applies the Harvard Analytical Framework (HAF) to interrogate four interrelated dimensions: Division of labour, access to and control over productive resources, influencing institutional and normative factors, and gender integration within project cycles.</p><p>The findings indicate that gender inequalities are most pronounced in asset ownership, decision making authority, and benefit distribution rather than participation alone. Women remain concentrated in labour intensive and lower value post-harvest activities, while men dominate harvesting, aquaculture production, licensing systems, and leadership positions within co management institutions. Across the three countries, men retain control over the majority of productive assets, including boats, fishing gear, land, and aquaculture infrastructure, while women's access to credit, extension services, and modern technologies remains constrained. These disparities are reinforced by inheritance regimes, gender norms, and male dominated governance structures that shape access to resources and control over income. Development interventions frequently expand women's participation without addressing underlying structural constraints, thereby contributing to the reproduction of institutional inequalities.</p><p>By linking structural analysis to policy relevant pathways, the study argues that inclusive blue economy development requires tenure reform, gender responsive financing mechanisms, institutional restructuring, and sustained normative change. The review positions gender equity as a governance and productivity imperative and provides an evidence based foundation for advancing resilient and inclusive fisheries and aquaculture systems in East Africa.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70210","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147567143","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Determining the Environmental Drivers of Greenshell Mussel (Perna canaliculus) Spat Settlement","authors":"Kayleb Himiona,&nbsp;Andrew G. Jeffs,&nbsp;Bradley M. Skelton","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70219","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70219","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Globally, mussel aquaculture production is often constrained by a limited supply of spat, the juvenile stage of mussels, used to initiate production. In some instances, the harvesting of wild spat on spat-collection ropes has the potential to quickly solve this acute shortage. However, the settlement of mussel spat on collectors is known to be highly variable and influenced by a range of environmental factors. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the variability of mussel spat settlement in relation to key environmental drivers, particularly those pertaining to larval supply and delivery (i.e., sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-α concentrations, significant wave height, and wind speed). A single length of 6-m spat-collection rope was deployed at a spat-collector farm in Whangapē Harbour, northern New Zealand, at 6 weekly intervals from August 2022 to December 2024 to monitor the settlement of Greenshell mussel (<i>Perna canaliculus</i> Gmelin, 1791) spat and the little black mussel (<i>Xenostrobus pulex</i> Lamarck, 1819). Greenshell spat settlement ranged from 750 to 39,000 spat m⁻¹ with no clear pattern in the abundance of settlers over time. Little black mussel settlement remained low (&lt;650 m⁻¹) throughout the study, except in a single instance where settlement peaked at 14,000 spat m⁻¹. Comparison of the settlement abundance with four environmental variables (i.e., sea surface temperature, chlorophyll-α concentration, significant wave height, and wind speed) isolated sea surface temperature as the most robust predictor for settlement in both species, with settlement increasing with decreasing temperature. Specifically, Greenshell spat settlement was nearly three times higher when the mean sea surface temperature was below 16°C, likely reflecting seasonal spawning cycles of mussels. For operators of spat-collector farms, this means that tracking seasonal seawater temperature changes can help identify peak spawning periods and guide the timing of collector deployments to maximise spat catches.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70219","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147566358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Determining the Environmental Drivers of Greenshell Mussel (Perna canaliculus) Spat Settlement","authors":"Kayleb Himiona,&nbsp;Andrew G. Jeffs,&nbsp;Bradley M. Skelton","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70219","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70219","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Globally, mussel aquaculture production is often constrained by a limited supply of spat, the juvenile stage of mussels, used to initiate production. In some instances, the harvesting of wild spat on spat-collection ropes has the potential to quickly solve this acute shortage. However, the settlement of mussel spat on collectors is known to be highly variable and influenced by a range of environmental factors. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the variability of mussel spat settlement in relation to key environmental drivers, particularly those pertaining to larval supply and delivery (i.e., sea surface temperature and chlorophyll-α concentrations, significant wave height, and wind speed). A single length of 6-m spat-collection rope was deployed at a spat-collector farm in Whangapē Harbour, northern New Zealand, at 6 weekly intervals from August 2022 to December 2024 to monitor the settlement of Greenshell mussel (<i>Perna canaliculus</i> Gmelin, 1791) spat and the little black mussel (<i>Xenostrobus pulex</i> Lamarck, 1819). Greenshell spat settlement ranged from 750 to 39,000 spat m⁻¹ with no clear pattern in the abundance of settlers over time. Little black mussel settlement remained low (&lt;650 m⁻¹) throughout the study, except in a single instance where settlement peaked at 14,000 spat m⁻¹. Comparison of the settlement abundance with four environmental variables (i.e., sea surface temperature, chlorophyll-α concentration, significant wave height, and wind speed) isolated sea surface temperature as the most robust predictor for settlement in both species, with settlement increasing with decreasing temperature. Specifically, Greenshell spat settlement was nearly three times higher when the mean sea surface temperature was below 16°C, likely reflecting seasonal spawning cycles of mussels. For operators of spat-collector farms, this means that tracking seasonal seawater temperature changes can help identify peak spawning periods and guide the timing of collector deployments to maximise spat catches.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70219","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147566231","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Juvenile and Adult Three-Spined Sticklebacks Exhibit Different Habitat Use in Shallow Baltic Sea Bays","authors":"Chiara D'Agata,&nbsp;Thomas A. B. Staveley","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70214","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70214","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Three-spined sticklebacks (<i>Gasterosteus aculeatus</i>) have become dominant in many Baltic Sea coastal fish assemblages, yet life-stage-specific habitat use remains poorly understood. We surveyed shallow water habitats along the coast of Gotland, Sweden, to examine how juvenile and adult stickleback abundances relate to variables such as submersed aquatic vegetation (SAV) biomass and vertical structure, macrophyte species richness, biomass of drift filamentous algae and potential invertebrate prey abundance. Juvenile stickleback abundance increased with SAV variables, macrophyte species richness, and drift filamentous algae, whereas, in contrast, adult abundance was only significantly associated with potential prey (invertebrate abundance). Our findings reveal life-stage-specific habitat associations of three-spined sticklebacks and highlights the importance of both long-living vegetation and ephemeral drift algae in supporting juvenile sticklebacks. This study contributes to a better understanding of sticklebacks’ coastal ecology in the central Baltic Sea.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70214","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147565025","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Marine Fish Parasites: A Bibliometric Review","authors":"Hongyan Zhang,&nbsp;Haiyan Hu","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70211","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70211","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Marine fish parasites threaten both aquaculture sustainability and food safety and have been studied for more than 200 years with more than 10,000 papers. However, there has been no systematic summary of this area in recent years. A total of 11,368 research papers on marine fish parasites were collected from Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus. On the basis of bibliometrics, the output of research achievements, contributions from countries/regions, institutions and authors, as well as their collaborative relationships, core journals, highly cited papers and references, were analysed. The evolutionary trends in research themes within this field were also explored. Emerging countries, institutions and scholars continue to appear in the study of marine fish parasites, and new achievements have been made in such fields as parasitology, genetics and marine ecology. The immune mechanisms, disease monitoring and vaccine development for parasitic diseases in commonly farmed fish species are key areas of focus for researchers in the coming period. This article provides a comprehensive portrait of marine fish parasite research, which is helpful for researchers to determine the research theme and choose partners and publications. The research limitation is that inconsistencies in data from different sources result in slight deviations in the analysis results.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70211","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147565162","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Juvenile and Adult Three-Spined Sticklebacks Exhibit Different Habitat Use in Shallow Baltic Sea Bays","authors":"Chiara D'Agata,&nbsp;Thomas A. B. Staveley","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70214","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70214","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Three-spined sticklebacks (<i>Gasterosteus aculeatus</i>) have become dominant in many Baltic Sea coastal fish assemblages, yet life-stage-specific habitat use remains poorly understood. We surveyed shallow water habitats along the coast of Gotland, Sweden, to examine how juvenile and adult stickleback abundances relate to variables such as submersed aquatic vegetation (SAV) biomass and vertical structure, macrophyte species richness, biomass of drift filamentous algae and potential invertebrate prey abundance. Juvenile stickleback abundance increased with SAV variables, macrophyte species richness, and drift filamentous algae, whereas, in contrast, adult abundance was only significantly associated with potential prey (invertebrate abundance). Our findings reveal life-stage-specific habitat associations of three-spined sticklebacks and highlights the importance of both long-living vegetation and ephemeral drift algae in supporting juvenile sticklebacks. This study contributes to a better understanding of sticklebacks’ coastal ecology in the central Baltic Sea.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70214","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147564874","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Marine Fish Parasites: A Bibliometric Review","authors":"Hongyan Zhang,&nbsp;Haiyan Hu","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70211","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70211","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Marine fish parasites threaten both aquaculture sustainability and food safety and have been studied for more than 200 years with more than 10,000 papers. However, there has been no systematic summary of this area in recent years. A total of 11,368 research papers on marine fish parasites were collected from Web of Science (WoS) and Scopus. On the basis of bibliometrics, the output of research achievements, contributions from countries/regions, institutions and authors, as well as their collaborative relationships, core journals, highly cited papers and references, were analysed. The evolutionary trends in research themes within this field were also explored. Emerging countries, institutions and scholars continue to appear in the study of marine fish parasites, and new achievements have been made in such fields as parasitology, genetics and marine ecology. The immune mechanisms, disease monitoring and vaccine development for parasitic diseases in commonly farmed fish species are key areas of focus for researchers in the coming period. This article provides a comprehensive portrait of marine fish parasite research, which is helpful for researchers to determine the research theme and choose partners and publications. The research limitation is that inconsistencies in data from different sources result in slight deviations in the analysis results.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-11","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70211","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147565026","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Health of Wild Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Smolts Along Coastal Migratory Routes in Newfoundland, Canada With and Without Salmonid Aquaculture as Assessed Using Sentinel Cages","authors":"Mark Young,&nbsp;Travis E. Van Leeuwen,&nbsp;Kimberly Marshall,&nbsp;Steven Duffy,&nbsp;Matthew Grandy,&nbsp;Jesse Bisson,&nbsp;Terry Bungay,&nbsp;Shannon Cross,&nbsp;Art Walsh,&nbsp;Donald Keefe,&nbsp;Ross Hinks,&nbsp;J. Brian Dempson,&nbsp;Mark D. Fast,&nbsp;Ian A. Fleming,&nbsp;Harry M. Murray","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70209","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70209","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Declines in wild Atlantic salmon populations in the North Atlantic with migratory routes adjacent to commercial salmonid aquaculture operations in coastal marine environments have raised concerns about the potential for direct or indirect effects this industry may have on local wild populations. To better understand potential impacts on wild Atlantic salmon in Newfoundland, Canada, we used six moored sentinel cages stocked with wild Atlantic salmon smolt to compare smolt health in an area with Atlantic salmon and steelhead trout aquaculture (Conne River/Bay d'Espoir) and without (Campbellton River/Notre Dame Bay). Average survival for wild Conne River smolt stocked in sentinel cages in Bay d'Espoir was 64.1% but varied from 35.5% to 84.8%. Average survival for wild Campbellton River smolt stocked in sentinel cages in Notre Dame Bay was higher at 73.5%, less variable and ranged from 69.7% to 78.1%. Differences in environmental variables and body condition loss among sentinel cages showed no significant association with survival. Health assessments revealed no external parasites, including the absence of sea lice on the smolt. Kidney and heart tissue samples from both locations were negative for infectious salmon anaemia virus. Prior to stocking, histological analysis revealed no epicarditis in the Conne River smolt and mild epicarditis in 6.7% of the Campbellton River smolt. Following deployment, histological analysis revealed mild epicarditis in 5.7% of the Conne River smolt and 7.7% of the Campbellton River smolt. Results suggest that local stressors, where present, are likely transient and spatially variable, highlighting the need to consider exposure duration and microhabitat influences when interpreting sentinel cage experiments. This research supports the use of sentinel cages in Newfoundland, and likely elsewhere, as a method for evaluation of wild smolt health along coastal migratory routes, whereas outcomes must be interpreted relative to short-term site-specific environmental conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70209","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147564351","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Health of Wild Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) Smolts Along Coastal Migratory Routes in Newfoundland, Canada With and Without Salmonid Aquaculture as Assessed Using Sentinel Cages","authors":"Mark Young,&nbsp;Travis E. Van Leeuwen,&nbsp;Kimberly Marshall,&nbsp;Steven Duffy,&nbsp;Matthew Grandy,&nbsp;Jesse Bisson,&nbsp;Terry Bungay,&nbsp;Shannon Cross,&nbsp;Art Walsh,&nbsp;Donald Keefe,&nbsp;Ross Hinks,&nbsp;J. Brian Dempson,&nbsp;Mark D. Fast,&nbsp;Ian A. Fleming,&nbsp;Harry M. Murray","doi":"10.1002/aff2.70209","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1002/aff2.70209","url":null,"abstract":"<p>Declines in wild Atlantic salmon populations in the North Atlantic with migratory routes adjacent to commercial salmonid aquaculture operations in coastal marine environments have raised concerns about the potential for direct or indirect effects this industry may have on local wild populations. To better understand potential impacts on wild Atlantic salmon in Newfoundland, Canada, we used six moored sentinel cages stocked with wild Atlantic salmon smolt to compare smolt health in an area with Atlantic salmon and steelhead trout aquaculture (Conne River/Bay d'Espoir) and without (Campbellton River/Notre Dame Bay). Average survival for wild Conne River smolt stocked in sentinel cages in Bay d'Espoir was 64.1% but varied from 35.5% to 84.8%. Average survival for wild Campbellton River smolt stocked in sentinel cages in Notre Dame Bay was higher at 73.5%, less variable and ranged from 69.7% to 78.1%. Differences in environmental variables and body condition loss among sentinel cages showed no significant association with survival. Health assessments revealed no external parasites, including the absence of sea lice on the smolt. Kidney and heart tissue samples from both locations were negative for infectious salmon anaemia virus. Prior to stocking, histological analysis revealed no epicarditis in the Conne River smolt and mild epicarditis in 6.7% of the Campbellton River smolt. Following deployment, histological analysis revealed mild epicarditis in 5.7% of the Conne River smolt and 7.7% of the Campbellton River smolt. Results suggest that local stressors, where present, are likely transient and spatially variable, highlighting the need to consider exposure duration and microhabitat influences when interpreting sentinel cage experiments. This research supports the use of sentinel cages in Newfoundland, and likely elsewhere, as a method for evaluation of wild smolt health along coastal migratory routes, whereas outcomes must be interpreted relative to short-term site-specific environmental conditions.</p>","PeriodicalId":100114,"journal":{"name":"Aquaculture, Fish and Fisheries","volume":"6 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":1.9,"publicationDate":"2026-03-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1002/aff2.70209","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"147564436","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}