Notes on laboratory rearing of juvenile spiny lobsters,jasus edwardsii (hutton) (crustacea: Decapoda: Palinuridae)

Post‐puerulus specimens of Jasus edwardsii (Hutton) have been successfully reared in the laboratory from the puerulus stage for periods of up to 12 months. The spiny lobsters were reared in concrete‐asbestos tanks measuring 2.4m × 37cm × 23cm. The tanks were supplied with a continuous flow of sea water and provided with constant aeration. Empty shells of paua (Haliotis iris Martyn) and rocks from the intertidal zone provided cover within the tanks.

Fresh mussel (Mytilus sp.) was preferred to all other foods tried in feeding experiments. The animals were fed every second day on opened mussels, and occasionally on fresh fish. The juveniles “grazed” actively on the calcareous algae (Corallina officinalis L.) present on the rocks.

The animals were extremely sensitive to pollution. To reduce pollution risks all sediments were removed from each tank, as the interstices between them were found to harbour uneaten food particles. Any uneaten foods were siphoned out every second day and each tank was thoroughly cleaned every six to eight weeks.

From a total of over 3,300 animals collected since November 1965, over 800 are presently being reared in the laboratory and various aspects of their ecology studied. The first step in raising larger adult sizes from juvenile stages in the laboratory is clearly possible.     

Fish populations of the Avon‐Heathcote estuary

Characteristic organisms are tabulated, and the substrate conditions briefly described for seven habitats in the Avon‐Heathcote Estuary, Christchurch, New Zealand. Temperatures and water movements within the estuary are outlined.

From April 1965 to April 1966, samples were collected by short otter‐trawl shots, gill netting, beach seine hauls, and dip netting; the limitations of the gear are noted. The distributions and movements are recorded for nine fish species : sand flounder, Rhombosolea plebeia (Richardson) ; yellow‐bellied flounder, Rhombosolea leporina (Hutton) ; common sole, Peltorhamphus novae‐zeelandiae (Gunther) ; ye'llow‐eyed mullet Aldrichetta forsteri (Cuvier and Valenciennes); kahawai, Arripis trutta (Bloch and Schneider); spotty, Pseudolabrus celidotus (Bloch and Schneider); cockabully, Tripterygion nigripenne (Cuvier and Valenciennes) ; common bully, Gobiomorphus basalis (Gray); and globe fish, Spheroides richei (Freminville).

Length‐frequency distributions showed that most of the nine species of fish used the estuary as a feeding area for adults and as a nursery area. Only two species did not migrate to and from the sea.

Length‐weight relationships for eight species showed that weight was a function of length approximately cubed, and that the exponential equation could be used to predict weight from length.

Regressions of caudal fin length on standard length for four species gave a positive correlation (r = +0.95). Relative proportions of body length to caudal fin length were related to habitat; fish of benthic habits had proportionally shorter caudal fins than pelagic fish.     

Broadbilled swordfish from Tasman bay,New Zealand (note)

On 4 January 1971 a solitary specimen of the broadbilled swordfish Xiphias gladius Linneaus (Osteichthyes: Xiphiidae) was shot in Croisilles Harbour (41° 04’ S, 173° 40’ E). This was the first time the species has been recorded in the Tasman Bay area.     

Preliminary observations of the internal tide over the shelf west of New Zealand

Abstract

Semidiurnal variations in the depth of the thermocline observed near the shelf edge north‐west of Cape Egmont are probably caused bv an internal tide generated at around 200 m depth over the continental slope. The observations suggest that in this region an internal tide, with amplitude of about 20 m, propagates onto the shelf with a speed of approximately 0.5 m·s^?1 and a wavelength of about 22 km.     

Reduction of a population of Canterbury mudfish,Neochanna burrowsius (Galaxiidae), by drovight

A population of Canterbury mudfish Neochanna burrowsius (Phillipps), estimated to exceed 3000 adults in July‐December 1975, and its habitat at Clearwell in mid Canterbury, are described. A 7 month drought nearly extinguished the population; this and the subsequent return migration (in August 1976) of survivors from a stockwater race are recorded.     

Urban stormwater quality I. Hillcrest,Hamilton, New Zealand

Water quality parameters associated with siltation (non‐volatile and volatile suspended solids), oxygen depletion (chemical and biochemical oxygen demand), nutrient enrichment (N, P), toxicity (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr, Ni, Cd), and human pathogenic micro‐organisms (coliforms, faecal coliforms, faecal streptococci) were measured in baseflow and stormflow from a residential catchment in Hamilton, New Zealand, from November 1979 to December 1981. A macro‐invertebrate survey was conducted. All parameters, except nitrogen, were predominantly associated with particulate material, and closely followed suspended solids behaviour during storm runoff. The concentrations of these particulate parameters are linearly related to suspended solid concentrations, which implies a reasonable consistency in the particulate source material, probably attributable to the uniform stable land use. The runoff was enriched with nitrate (from septic tank seepage) and the particles by Zn, Pb, and Cu. There was little or no enrichment of the particulates with phosphorus, nitrogen, organic matter, Cr, or Ni relative to catchment soils. Ni, Cr, and Cd were generally below detection limits. Dissolved reactive phosphorus and NH₄ ⁺‐N levels were low and unimportant in total P or N leaving the catchment. Most organic matter was particulate and only slowly degraded, and consequently the biological oxygen demand was only a small fraction (c. 13%) of chemical oxygen demand. Interpretation of the water quality data allows some tentative predictions to be made of potential receiving water impacts. It is doubtful that urban runoff will cause significant oxygen depletion, although the high level of organic‐rich particulate material could lead to a deterioration of receiving water sediments and affect benthic invertebrates. Urban runoff may be an important source of nutrients, but (apart from nitrate) its importance depends on the amount of suspended material in the runoff rather than increased input of nutrients from urban‐related activities. Bacterial counts indicate a poor water quality. The impact of metals will depend largely on the bioavailability of the particulate‐bound fraction. The key to the understanding of transport, treatment, and impact of most potential pollutants in urban runoff is probably their association with particulate materials.     

Water quality in a polluted lowland stream with chronically depressed dissolved oxygen: Causes and effects

Abstract

The Whangamaire Stream (North Island, New Zealand) has high concentrations of nitrate nitrogen (NO^? ₃‐N), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅), and Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN) as a result of catchment land use practices. The lower reaches of the stream drain intensively farmed land and have dissolved oxygen (DO) levels of 10–50% saturation. The dominant riparian vegetation, Apium nodiflorum, provides a large organic loading by intercepting nutrients in run‐off and then decaying in the stream channel. Water quality and reaeration aspects of the stream were studied in order to explain the observed low DO levels. Measurements of the reaeration coefficient at 20°C, K₂ ²⁰, using methyl chloride (CH₃Cl) as a gas tracer, yielded values of 1.1–3.0 d^?1 for the upper part of the study reach and 15.5–16.2 d^?1 for the lower reach (overall average 12.5 ± 2.5 d^?1). These were in agreement with values inferred from single‐station diurnal curve analysis, which also showed that respiration was dominant in the lower reach where photo‐synthetic activity was inhibited by shade. The relatively large reaeration coefficients ensure that parts of the stream do not become anoxic at night time. Better riparian management and reduced nutrient inputs are likely to improve stream water quality.