Check-off List for Possible Aquaculture Project
There are many things that can determine the success or failure of an aquaculture project, some being: land costs, property taxes, labor costs, transportation costs, many zoning and land use restrictions, getting enough water to operate the facility, utility costs, supply/feed costs, restrictive waste disposal and environmental regulations, predation by protected birds, disease problems and costs, operating money available, politics, permits, theft, weather, sabotage, insurance, emergency back-up equipment, sloppy work, qualified workers, site location, facility design, research on aquaculture procedures, etc.
Before a farmer or any other person jumps into the "great potential" of aquaculture he should consider answers to the following:
Agencies
--Does agency proposing the project have ANY successful private aquaculture ventures that it advised presently in operation and making a profit?
--Did agency proposing the project EVER spawn a successful aquaculture venture?
--What help or opposition will he get from various county, state, and federal agencies, etc.?
--Are there any agencies that will do joint projects, or fund a grant for studies on a particular aquaculture species?
Disasters
--Are there plans/equipment to prevent sudden losses of stock/ power during disasters?
--Can he quickly get labor to move stock if needed?
--Does he have a plan on how to recover/ control/ kill escaped stock?
--Can he get federal assistance for recovery in case of a disaster?
Labor
--Are there qualified people to work in aquaculture in the area that he can hire?
--Are labor costs too high?
Location
--How will his operation affect his neighbors, or those (or the environment) down-slope or downstream? Liability insurance.
--Is land high enough so that property will not be flooded during floods or storm surges?
--Is site drainage good?
--Can the soil retain water in ponds? Will the ponds hold water if lined with clay?
--Does soil contain toxins or contaminants of any kind that could affect his living crop?
--Will he have to put expensive liners into ponds to retain water or avoid toxins in soil?
--Will anyone be available to live on the grounds?
--Can all the necessary permits be obtained for the site/facility?
--Is site on a private, or dead-end road so traffic can be somewhat limited?
Operating/facility costs
--What are all the costs of physical facilities (buildings, ponds, tanks, roads, wells, etc.), water, utilities, equipment, vehicles, feed, labor, repair, maintenance, transportation, communication, security, marketing product, permits, waste disposal, insurance, etc., etc.?
--Is there enough operating capital to sustain operation until a profit is reached?
--Is there a good, detailed business plan?
--How long can he operate without another operation in a cheaper country putting out a cheaper product?
--Can he save costs by using family as workers?
--What federal or state asistance is available for a new aquaculture venture?
Parasites, diseases, predators
--Is there a specialist in parasites/diseases close by that can assist in times of need? What are costs?
--Are there agency or Extension Service qualified people available for advice?
--How will he handle bird predation? Or predation by snakes, frogs, etc.?
Permits, etc.
--Is he zoned to do an aquaculture project?
--Can he get enough good water to run facility?
--Can he drill wells, or pipe water from another location?
--Can he get permits for water disposal/ discharge?
--Are there any endangered species on the site proposed?
--Can he get permits to control predatory birds?
--Can he get permits to raise the organisms he is interested in selling?
Stock
--Is there a reliable source of healthy young organisms to obtain to stock out?
--Can he easily raise his own organisms to stock out?
--Is there a market close by that will take any/all of his product?
--Where are the different markets for the products (live, dressed, frozen, breaded, etc) ?
--How will he prevent escape of his stock into environment?
--What are the fines for escaped stock?
--How will he secure his stock from predation, theft, and sabotage?
Time
--Can he and his family live 24 hours a day for the aquaculture operation?
Wastes
--Can he get a wastewater discharge permit? For blood and organism fluids?
--Can he get a discharge permit for various chemicals used in sterilizing tanks and equipment, and for drugs/ chemicals used in the treatment of diseases/ parasites?
--Can he dispose of dead stock and not offend neighbors or pollute local waters?
--Does he have a way of disposal of waste byproducts from processing his product?
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Monday, December 3, 2012
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Roaches in the House
Roaches in the House
During my stay as Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi I ran an advisory service and a fish disease/ parasite diagnostic service/ lab for the public, pet stores, other labs, aquaculture ventures, other aquariums, etc. I examined many fish, and other aquatic organisms, under many different and sometimes strange circumstances.
One time a man came in with his wife's pet goldfish, about 5 inches TL. The fish was under obvious stress, gasping, mouth open, and opercules flared. It was not eating. Its skin and fins looked ok.
I placed the live goldfish in a bucket of clean freshwater, and slowly added MS -222 ( tricaine methanesulfonate ) with small granules stuck on forceps and stirred the water with the forceps. I kept on adding MS-222 until the fish just barely started to lose equilibrium, noticed by its starting to slip from a vertical body position to laying over on its side. Then I placed it into a finger bowl with clean water so it would start reviving and examined its branchial cavity. A large American roach in a molt stage without wings yet was lodged in its branchial cavity. I disengaged the roach legs from the gill arches and pulled the roach out, and said, "Tell your wife she has roaches in the house."
The goldfish apparently tried to eat a roach that fell into its water and the roach got stuck, causing the fish a lot of stress.
The goldfish was revived in clean freshwater and the man left with his fish problem solved, but a new one to tackle.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
During my stay as Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi I ran an advisory service and a fish disease/ parasite diagnostic service/ lab for the public, pet stores, other labs, aquaculture ventures, other aquariums, etc. I examined many fish, and other aquatic organisms, under many different and sometimes strange circumstances.
One time a man came in with his wife's pet goldfish, about 5 inches TL. The fish was under obvious stress, gasping, mouth open, and opercules flared. It was not eating. Its skin and fins looked ok.
I placed the live goldfish in a bucket of clean freshwater, and slowly added MS -222 ( tricaine methanesulfonate ) with small granules stuck on forceps and stirred the water with the forceps. I kept on adding MS-222 until the fish just barely started to lose equilibrium, noticed by its starting to slip from a vertical body position to laying over on its side. Then I placed it into a finger bowl with clean water so it would start reviving and examined its branchial cavity. A large American roach in a molt stage without wings yet was lodged in its branchial cavity. I disengaged the roach legs from the gill arches and pulled the roach out, and said, "Tell your wife she has roaches in the house."
The goldfish apparently tried to eat a roach that fell into its water and the roach got stuck, causing the fish a lot of stress.
The goldfish was revived in clean freshwater and the man left with his fish problem solved, but a new one to tackle.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Save Redfish from Amyloodinium
Save Redfish from Amyloodinium
In the 1980s I worked with another university's research team on redfish aquaculture as an advisor. This was while I was Aquarium Supervisor at the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi. I received a call from them to check out sick redfish in their indoor tank systems of 1000-gallon tanks with bead filters.
I could not examine the fish, so I told the staff to put the outflow of the bead filter into the tank at the edge and direct the water flow along edge so the water in the tank had a circular motion for a few minutes. Then we turned the filter off to let the water settle for a few minutes. I then had them put a siphon hose in the middle of the tank and siphon off water from the tank bottom into a bucket. I then stirred the water in the bucket in a circular motion and let it settle for a few minutes. Finally I used a pipette to draw off water from the bottom center of the bucket and looked at the debris with a dissecting stereomicroscope. After seeing what appeared to be small cysts I put the debris under a compound microscope and confirmed the cysts were from Amyloodinium ocellatum, a parasitic dinoflagellate found on the gills, fins, and skin of various saltwater fishes.
I explained to the staff what they had and that unless they followed my advice they would lose their brood stock redfish. I told them to get some large swimming pool diatom filters and put on the tanks to suck all the infective stages of the dinoflagellates out of the tanks before they could attach to the fish. Those stages remaining on the fish would mature, fall off, and then would either be sucked up as cysts or, after divisions, as infective dinospores. Then the fish would be free of Amyloodinium. Thereafter, they could leave the diatom filters on the tanks or use them periodically to keep the Amyloodinium under control.
They had no further problems with Amyloodinium. In the early 1980s I told various aquaculture ventures and public aquariums how to save their fish from Amyloodinium using diatom filters. I had already told fellow staff members the procedure to use on saving cobia, pompano, speckled trout, red snapper, striped bass, etc. from Amyloodinium at my organization.
To this day this is the easiest way to keep saltwater fish without worry from Amyloodinium.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Lawler, A. R. 2007. Diatom filters.
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
In the 1980s I worked with another university's research team on redfish aquaculture as an advisor. This was while I was Aquarium Supervisor at the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi. I received a call from them to check out sick redfish in their indoor tank systems of 1000-gallon tanks with bead filters.
I could not examine the fish, so I told the staff to put the outflow of the bead filter into the tank at the edge and direct the water flow along edge so the water in the tank had a circular motion for a few minutes. Then we turned the filter off to let the water settle for a few minutes. I then had them put a siphon hose in the middle of the tank and siphon off water from the tank bottom into a bucket. I then stirred the water in the bucket in a circular motion and let it settle for a few minutes. Finally I used a pipette to draw off water from the bottom center of the bucket and looked at the debris with a dissecting stereomicroscope. After seeing what appeared to be small cysts I put the debris under a compound microscope and confirmed the cysts were from Amyloodinium ocellatum, a parasitic dinoflagellate found on the gills, fins, and skin of various saltwater fishes.
I explained to the staff what they had and that unless they followed my advice they would lose their brood stock redfish. I told them to get some large swimming pool diatom filters and put on the tanks to suck all the infective stages of the dinoflagellates out of the tanks before they could attach to the fish. Those stages remaining on the fish would mature, fall off, and then would either be sucked up as cysts or, after divisions, as infective dinospores. Then the fish would be free of Amyloodinium. Thereafter, they could leave the diatom filters on the tanks or use them periodically to keep the Amyloodinium under control.
They had no further problems with Amyloodinium. In the early 1980s I told various aquaculture ventures and public aquariums how to save their fish from Amyloodinium using diatom filters. I had already told fellow staff members the procedure to use on saving cobia, pompano, speckled trout, red snapper, striped bass, etc. from Amyloodinium at my organization.
To this day this is the easiest way to keep saltwater fish without worry from Amyloodinium.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Lawler, A. R. 2007. Diatom filters.
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
Broodstock Redfish Handling Deaths at Aquaculture Facility
Broodstock Redfish Handling Deaths at Aquaculture Facility
In the l980s and l990s I was involved with several redfish aquaculture ventures in the United States as an advisor and scientist to assist them. I was a marine biologist that majored in fish parasitology/diseases under Dr. W. J. Hargis, Jr., and had extensive experience in holding, and rearing aquatic organisms. I was hired as a post-doctoral fellow by Dr. Gordon Gunter, an influence on my life and research. Part of this time as an advisor in various aquaculture projects I was Head of Experimental Organism Culture of a Toxicology Program and co-chairman of the Toxicology Program and the rest of the time I was Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi. This was an advisory service of the state organization I was a member of during those times. We were in the initial stages of learning how to raise redfish and learned as we progressed along.
In the mid l980s one facility had built its broodstock tank and building and was ready to stock out adult redfish in order to obtain eggs. The personnel got adult redfish from a purse seine operation and transported them to a man-made pond on the grounds of the aquaculture farm. After those that were injured in capture and transport died, it was decided to be time to move the adults from the pond uphill to the holding facility.
The adult fish were coralled by pulling a seine in the pond, pulled into shallow water (where they became frantic and thrashed about), manually picked up and carried to a weighing-measuring table (they were dropped, and slime coat damaged), measured and weighed (beating tail on table, slid off table, etc.), manually carried (several tens of steps) to the brood tank, and put into tank water. I was mostly an observer/advisor during this operation as I did not want to be directly responsible, as a state employee, for the well-being of expensive fish belonging to a private venture plus I could not impose my ideas onto a private business (They could accept or reject my advice as they wished.). The owners of the redfish farm, their staff, and friends were the ones handling the operation and their procedures (which I presumed they had researched) were followed.
I had to bite my tongue on the excessive handling of the fish, and commented that they should be out of water as little as possible. For some reason they thought it necessary to get accurate readings of weight and length of the fish before they went into the brood tank. The fish were out of the water from pond to tank usually five minutes or more.
After about 35 fish were moved to the brood tank, the primary owner said he was glad that was done. I said he was not finished yet. He asked why. I told him that someone needed to get into the tank and pull out all the dead fish before they fouled the water. They did not want to believe me. The junior owner finally got down to his underwear and got into the tank, feeling around with his feet and hands. He was surprised when he found the first dead fish, and shocked when they got up to 12 dead fish. A few more died on following days.
After we had a pile of dead fish on the floor, the owners wanted to know why. I started opening them up. All 12 had bleeding from the blood vessels in the mesenteries of the digestive tract. The fish had the same problem beached whales get. When no longer supported (buoyed up) by water gravity takes over and internal organs "fall," causing ripping in the mesenteries and contained blood vessels, internal bleeding, shock, and sometimes death.
The rough handling, carrying, dropping, flopping on table, etc. caused internal bleeding and shock that some of the fish could not handle.
The owners should have transported the fish as quickly as possible to the brood tank and forgotten about weighing and measuring. They should also have carried the fish in wet slings for better body support, or in water if they could.
The facility succeeded in getting eggs from their remaining redfish, and raised redfish for several years before going out of operation.
We all learned from this .............
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph. D. (C) 2012 --
In the l980s and l990s I was involved with several redfish aquaculture ventures in the United States as an advisor and scientist to assist them. I was a marine biologist that majored in fish parasitology/diseases under Dr. W. J. Hargis, Jr., and had extensive experience in holding, and rearing aquatic organisms. I was hired as a post-doctoral fellow by Dr. Gordon Gunter, an influence on my life and research. Part of this time as an advisor in various aquaculture projects I was Head of Experimental Organism Culture of a Toxicology Program and co-chairman of the Toxicology Program and the rest of the time I was Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi. This was an advisory service of the state organization I was a member of during those times. We were in the initial stages of learning how to raise redfish and learned as we progressed along.
In the mid l980s one facility had built its broodstock tank and building and was ready to stock out adult redfish in order to obtain eggs. The personnel got adult redfish from a purse seine operation and transported them to a man-made pond on the grounds of the aquaculture farm. After those that were injured in capture and transport died, it was decided to be time to move the adults from the pond uphill to the holding facility.
The adult fish were coralled by pulling a seine in the pond, pulled into shallow water (where they became frantic and thrashed about), manually picked up and carried to a weighing-measuring table (they were dropped, and slime coat damaged), measured and weighed (beating tail on table, slid off table, etc.), manually carried (several tens of steps) to the brood tank, and put into tank water. I was mostly an observer/advisor during this operation as I did not want to be directly responsible, as a state employee, for the well-being of expensive fish belonging to a private venture plus I could not impose my ideas onto a private business (They could accept or reject my advice as they wished.). The owners of the redfish farm, their staff, and friends were the ones handling the operation and their procedures (which I presumed they had researched) were followed.
I had to bite my tongue on the excessive handling of the fish, and commented that they should be out of water as little as possible. For some reason they thought it necessary to get accurate readings of weight and length of the fish before they went into the brood tank. The fish were out of the water from pond to tank usually five minutes or more.
After about 35 fish were moved to the brood tank, the primary owner said he was glad that was done. I said he was not finished yet. He asked why. I told him that someone needed to get into the tank and pull out all the dead fish before they fouled the water. They did not want to believe me. The junior owner finally got down to his underwear and got into the tank, feeling around with his feet and hands. He was surprised when he found the first dead fish, and shocked when they got up to 12 dead fish. A few more died on following days.
After we had a pile of dead fish on the floor, the owners wanted to know why. I started opening them up. All 12 had bleeding from the blood vessels in the mesenteries of the digestive tract. The fish had the same problem beached whales get. When no longer supported (buoyed up) by water gravity takes over and internal organs "fall," causing ripping in the mesenteries and contained blood vessels, internal bleeding, shock, and sometimes death.
The rough handling, carrying, dropping, flopping on table, etc. caused internal bleeding and shock that some of the fish could not handle.
The owners should have transported the fish as quickly as possible to the brood tank and forgotten about weighing and measuring. They should also have carried the fish in wet slings for better body support, or in water if they could.
The facility succeeded in getting eggs from their remaining redfish, and raised redfish for several years before going out of operation.
We all learned from this .............
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph. D. (C) 2012 --
Saturday, November 24, 2012
Potential Aquaculture Problems with Cobia
Potential Aquaculture Problems with Cobia
(This summary was first written 18 Nov 1997 for a potential aquaculture article. It was based on personal experience working with cobia at a research project in Ocean Springs and on display at the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi, Mississippi. It was recently found in an old email account and a few changes were made for this publication.)
FISH TB (Mycobacterium marinum)
Susceptible to fish TB. Signs of this disease in cobia are obvious: the fish lose normal gray/black and white markings and become very pale, with a whitish body film/sheen that even covers the eyes, which may appear bloodshot. Fins may also appear pink in color. Since cobia are voracious feeders one must take care that fish fed to them do not carry fish TB. See history of salmon culture where salmon were infected with fish TB after they were fed their dead tank-mates. Due to the dangers of fish TB a pelleted food for cobia should be developed (as they did for salmon).
INGEST SUBSTRATE
Young cobia, at least, do not distinguish between sinking food pellets and crushed coral substrate, or accidentally ingest the coral along with the food pellets, or cannot separate food from coral. See Lawler (1995). Ingestion of substrate can result in impacted intestinal tracts and lost fish. Feed floating pellets or pieces of natural food, or avoid use of substrate in your system.
VORACIOUS FEEDERS
In an Aquarium setting, cobia have been observed to be one of the fastest-growing fish. In our experience, redfish, tripletail, and black drum follow cobia in growth rate. Dolphin (the fish) have one of the fastest growth rates of fishes. One of our cobia grew from about 10 lbs to almost 65 lbs in 28 months (Aug 16, 1988 to Dec 15, l990). Since cobia are voracious feeders and compete vigorously for food one must be aware of three observations made thus far:
1. Cobia can eat so much they can die ( In an aquarium setting I had 3 cobia that darted around tank rapidly, getting as much food as possible. One day after we tried to get food to other fish in the tank by throwing a lot of food into the tank, all three cobia ate a lot, and two were shortly found dead from overeating.) Solution: disperse food over surface of the tank several times a day so they do not ingest too much food at one time.
2. In their feeding frenzy cobia may collide or hit objects in the tank, resulting in internal bleeding and loss of fish. (See Lawler, 1995).
3. Cobia are voracious feeders. I call them the "pigs of the sea" because they will eat almost anything: hardhead catfish, stingrays, eels, crabs, fish, etc. When we were testing our now patented fish attractant, we had a cobia swim up to the stern of the boat and grab the test chum bag containing the attractant.
This habit of eating about anything can result in injury to the fish. In taking internal organ samples at a cobia fishing tournament, it was noticed that spines from catfish and stingrays can penetrate the gut wall and then penetrate various organs: liver, pancreas, spleen. One should probably avoid feeding "spiny" foods to cobia. Some stomachs were noticed to be devoid of food, but contained many spines.
AMYLOODONIUM INFECTION
Cobia are highly susceptible to Amyloodinium ocellatum. See papers by Lawler. Fish will have difficulty in breathing and may rest on the bottom more than normal. Isolate in a treatment tank, use 1.6 grams of Marex per 50 gallons of tank water for 13-18 hours to knock Amyloodinium off. May need more treatments because Amyloodinium caught in gill mucus can re-infect fish. In working with a chief scientist on a cobia project several years ago, I set the protocols at that lab for treatment of cobia for Amyloodinium. One can also use a diatom filter to filter infective dinospores out of the tank water and thus avoid fish loss due to Amyloodinium (see my article on diatom filters).
MONOGENETIC TREMATODE INFECTION
Cobia carry a gill monogenea Dioncus rachycentris Hargis, l955 , which, in tank/confined areas can multiply very rapidly, causing extreme breathing distress in the fish, which must then be given 1:4000 formalin baths of at least 15 minutes duration to knock most of the worms off the gills. This bath may have to be repeated several times as worm eggs in the gill mucus can re-infect the fish. Worm eggs in the water column can be filtered out with a diatom filter.
INTERNAL BLEEDING/MOVING INJURY
From personal experience in moving large redfish, one should take care in moving brood stock cobia, or any large cobia. When no longer supported by water, the forces of gravity take over and "falling" or shifting internal organs can stretch the supporting mesenteries, leading to bleeding from the blood vessels of the mesenteries, and sometimes resulting in shock and death.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Lawler, A.R. 1995. Some unusual deaths of cobia, Rachycentron canadum, in display tanks. Drum & Croaker 26 (Feb 1995): 9-10.
Lawler, A. R. 2007. Diatom filters. http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
(This summary was first written 18 Nov 1997 for a potential aquaculture article. It was based on personal experience working with cobia at a research project in Ocean Springs and on display at the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi, Mississippi. It was recently found in an old email account and a few changes were made for this publication.)
FISH TB (Mycobacterium marinum)
Susceptible to fish TB. Signs of this disease in cobia are obvious: the fish lose normal gray/black and white markings and become very pale, with a whitish body film/sheen that even covers the eyes, which may appear bloodshot. Fins may also appear pink in color. Since cobia are voracious feeders one must take care that fish fed to them do not carry fish TB. See history of salmon culture where salmon were infected with fish TB after they were fed their dead tank-mates. Due to the dangers of fish TB a pelleted food for cobia should be developed (as they did for salmon).
INGEST SUBSTRATE
Young cobia, at least, do not distinguish between sinking food pellets and crushed coral substrate, or accidentally ingest the coral along with the food pellets, or cannot separate food from coral. See Lawler (1995). Ingestion of substrate can result in impacted intestinal tracts and lost fish. Feed floating pellets or pieces of natural food, or avoid use of substrate in your system.
VORACIOUS FEEDERS
In an Aquarium setting, cobia have been observed to be one of the fastest-growing fish. In our experience, redfish, tripletail, and black drum follow cobia in growth rate. Dolphin (the fish) have one of the fastest growth rates of fishes. One of our cobia grew from about 10 lbs to almost 65 lbs in 28 months (Aug 16, 1988 to Dec 15, l990). Since cobia are voracious feeders and compete vigorously for food one must be aware of three observations made thus far:
1. Cobia can eat so much they can die ( In an aquarium setting I had 3 cobia that darted around tank rapidly, getting as much food as possible. One day after we tried to get food to other fish in the tank by throwing a lot of food into the tank, all three cobia ate a lot, and two were shortly found dead from overeating.) Solution: disperse food over surface of the tank several times a day so they do not ingest too much food at one time.
2. In their feeding frenzy cobia may collide or hit objects in the tank, resulting in internal bleeding and loss of fish. (See Lawler, 1995).
3. Cobia are voracious feeders. I call them the "pigs of the sea" because they will eat almost anything: hardhead catfish, stingrays, eels, crabs, fish, etc. When we were testing our now patented fish attractant, we had a cobia swim up to the stern of the boat and grab the test chum bag containing the attractant.
This habit of eating about anything can result in injury to the fish. In taking internal organ samples at a cobia fishing tournament, it was noticed that spines from catfish and stingrays can penetrate the gut wall and then penetrate various organs: liver, pancreas, spleen. One should probably avoid feeding "spiny" foods to cobia. Some stomachs were noticed to be devoid of food, but contained many spines.
AMYLOODONIUM INFECTION
Cobia are highly susceptible to Amyloodinium ocellatum. See papers by Lawler. Fish will have difficulty in breathing and may rest on the bottom more than normal. Isolate in a treatment tank, use 1.6 grams of Marex per 50 gallons of tank water for 13-18 hours to knock Amyloodinium off. May need more treatments because Amyloodinium caught in gill mucus can re-infect fish. In working with a chief scientist on a cobia project several years ago, I set the protocols at that lab for treatment of cobia for Amyloodinium. One can also use a diatom filter to filter infective dinospores out of the tank water and thus avoid fish loss due to Amyloodinium (see my article on diatom filters).
MONOGENETIC TREMATODE INFECTION
Cobia carry a gill monogenea Dioncus rachycentris Hargis, l955 , which, in tank/confined areas can multiply very rapidly, causing extreme breathing distress in the fish, which must then be given 1:4000 formalin baths of at least 15 minutes duration to knock most of the worms off the gills. This bath may have to be repeated several times as worm eggs in the gill mucus can re-infect the fish. Worm eggs in the water column can be filtered out with a diatom filter.
INTERNAL BLEEDING/MOVING INJURY
From personal experience in moving large redfish, one should take care in moving brood stock cobia, or any large cobia. When no longer supported by water, the forces of gravity take over and "falling" or shifting internal organs can stretch the supporting mesenteries, leading to bleeding from the blood vessels of the mesenteries, and sometimes resulting in shock and death.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Lawler, A.R. 1995. Some unusual deaths of cobia, Rachycentron canadum, in display tanks. Drum & Croaker 26 (Feb 1995): 9-10.
Lawler, A. R. 2007. Diatom filters. http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Dolphin Deaths in the Gulf
Dolphin Deaths in the Gulf
The SunHerald of 16 November 2012 reported some dolphin deaths in the Gulf, http://www.sunherald.com/2012/11/16/4309592/hunt-is-on-for-dolphin-killers.html#storylink=relast , and an investigator was appointed http://www.sunherald.com/2012/11/20/4315408/noaa-appoints-investigator-to.html .
I am guessing that some dolphins that learned how to get a free lunch from those working on the water by making a hole in their nets and eating their catch were "discouraged" from stealing by a few bullets. It is difficult to discourage dolphins, people, and various other animals once they have learned how to get a free lunch at someone else's expense.
I also suspect the dolphin that got its lower jaw ripped off/cut off (?) got it caught in the net while trying to steal some catch, and the net was pulled in, tearing jaw off. Or the dolphin struggled so much to get loose (before it drowned) it tore its own jaw off and bled to death. Or the jaw was cut off after the dolphin drowned to remove it from the net. This one was probably an accident.
The one with tail cut off could be due to tail getting caught in lines of net or net itself and it then drowned. Then it could have been cut loose and out of net tangle. This one was also probably an accident.
Dolphins sometimes drown when caught in nets and getting tangled up.
If we could somehow figure out a way to compensate those working on the water for net damage and loss of catch from dolphins eating catch or catch escaping out net holes the "discouraging" of stealing would probably stop.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
The SunHerald of 16 November 2012 reported some dolphin deaths in the Gulf, http://www.sunherald.com/2012/11/16/4309592/hunt-is-on-for-dolphin-killers.html#storylink=relast , and an investigator was appointed http://www.sunherald.com/2012/11/20/4315408/noaa-appoints-investigator-to.html .
I am guessing that some dolphins that learned how to get a free lunch from those working on the water by making a hole in their nets and eating their catch were "discouraged" from stealing by a few bullets. It is difficult to discourage dolphins, people, and various other animals once they have learned how to get a free lunch at someone else's expense.
I also suspect the dolphin that got its lower jaw ripped off/cut off (?) got it caught in the net while trying to steal some catch, and the net was pulled in, tearing jaw off. Or the dolphin struggled so much to get loose (before it drowned) it tore its own jaw off and bled to death. Or the jaw was cut off after the dolphin drowned to remove it from the net. This one was probably an accident.
The one with tail cut off could be due to tail getting caught in lines of net or net itself and it then drowned. Then it could have been cut loose and out of net tangle. This one was also probably an accident.
Dolphins sometimes drown when caught in nets and getting tangled up.
If we could somehow figure out a way to compensate those working on the water for net damage and loss of catch from dolphins eating catch or catch escaping out net holes the "discouraging" of stealing would probably stop.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. (C) 2012 --
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Danger in Caterpillar Poo?
Danger in Caterpillar Poo?
This fall of 2012 I have been having the worse time ever with larval moths eating up my leaf lettuce, mostly deer tongue lettuce. Green caterpillars and brown caterpillars have been caught in the lettuce thus far.
A study of the internet suggested that the green caterpillars are lettuce loopers, which look similar to inchworms, and turn into moths. The brown ones appear to be corn earworms, which eat on various garden plants, and also turn into moths.
One can track their presence by looking for their poo (frass) deposited on the lettuce leaves during the night.
After eating a batch of lettuce in a salad recently I came down with an upset stomach and loose stools, apparently from bacteria in the caterpillar poo (frass). I think I did not wash the lettuce well enough.
I think it possible that caterpillar poo presents a danger to those eating raw lettuce, spinach, greens, and other vegetables if not washed well enough. This type of poo could join human poo, deer poo, and various other animal poos deposited in fields of vegetables eaten raw by humans as a possible danger of human intestinal infection. Hopefully scientists will identify the bacteria in caterpillar poo and confirm/deny if there is a potential danger to humans in caterpillar poo.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
This fall of 2012 I have been having the worse time ever with larval moths eating up my leaf lettuce, mostly deer tongue lettuce. Green caterpillars and brown caterpillars have been caught in the lettuce thus far.
A study of the internet suggested that the green caterpillars are lettuce loopers, which look similar to inchworms, and turn into moths. The brown ones appear to be corn earworms, which eat on various garden plants, and also turn into moths.
One can track their presence by looking for their poo (frass) deposited on the lettuce leaves during the night.
After eating a batch of lettuce in a salad recently I came down with an upset stomach and loose stools, apparently from bacteria in the caterpillar poo (frass). I think I did not wash the lettuce well enough.
I think it possible that caterpillar poo presents a danger to those eating raw lettuce, spinach, greens, and other vegetables if not washed well enough. This type of poo could join human poo, deer poo, and various other animal poos deposited in fields of vegetables eaten raw by humans as a possible danger of human intestinal infection. Hopefully scientists will identify the bacteria in caterpillar poo and confirm/deny if there is a potential danger to humans in caterpillar poo.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Bamboo Wars
Bamboo Wars
Some 40 years ago I started planting clumping and running bamboo for screens along the street side of my place. Since the bamboo has been established, I am constantly bothered by those breaking or cutting my bamboo.
It is amazing to see the types of people involved in bamboo theft, or damage (from little girls to insurance executives):
---those wanting plant stakes
---those wanting to start up bamboo, yet have no idea of how to do it
---those wanting fishing poles
---those wanting play sticks or swords or switches
---those wanting walking sticks
---those that like to mess with other people
---those that like to destroy things
---those bending bamboo over the road so cars would hit it, or have to go around overhanging stalks
Asking people to stop damaging the bamboo, or offering to cut the stalks I wanted removed did not work. Finally, it got so bad I had to think of a solution. I decided to cut stalks that were either dead or in places not wanted and place them along property next to street for people to take without them having to expend any effort on their part to get the bamboo. Since a lot of people are basically lazy, the offering of already cut stalks (usually about 15-20) is apparently working. There is less breaking of my bamboo screen. Those that like to mess with others or destroy things are still breaking the bamboo. I have to replace the stalks about twice a month.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Some 40 years ago I started planting clumping and running bamboo for screens along the street side of my place. Since the bamboo has been established, I am constantly bothered by those breaking or cutting my bamboo.
It is amazing to see the types of people involved in bamboo theft, or damage (from little girls to insurance executives):
---those wanting plant stakes
---those wanting to start up bamboo, yet have no idea of how to do it
---those wanting fishing poles
---those wanting play sticks or swords or switches
---those wanting walking sticks
---those that like to mess with other people
---those that like to destroy things
---those bending bamboo over the road so cars would hit it, or have to go around overhanging stalks
Asking people to stop damaging the bamboo, or offering to cut the stalks I wanted removed did not work. Finally, it got so bad I had to think of a solution. I decided to cut stalks that were either dead or in places not wanted and place them along property next to street for people to take without them having to expend any effort on their part to get the bamboo. Since a lot of people are basically lazy, the offering of already cut stalks (usually about 15-20) is apparently working. There is less breaking of my bamboo screen. Those that like to mess with others or destroy things are still breaking the bamboo. I have to replace the stalks about twice a month.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Wednesday, September 19, 2012
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Remove Sea Turtles from Large Tank
Remove Sea Turtles from Large Tank
When I was transferred to run an aquarium in 1984, the staff on site had already put 7 loggerhead and Kemp's Ridley sea turtles into the new 40,000 gallon main tank. Most were brought in by shrimpers who had caught them in their nets. I have no idea why they decided to hold the turtles for a while or why they put them into the main tank. They all appeared healthy and free of obvious injuries. The turtles were already tearing the new main tank filter apart. At night they would try to wedge themselves under a tank decoration (fiberglass fake rocks or trawl board, etc.) or under the crushed coral substrate so they would be stable while resting or asleep. They were digging down to the screening holding up the crushed coral and tearing holes in the screen that allowed the crushed coral to fall to the base of the tank, causing "dead" spots in the crushed coral biological filter (water was no longer circulating through the pile of coral extending from the tank bottom to/or above the screen).
The Curator of the building requested I get the turtles out of the tank and release them back to the wild to stop further damage to the tank filter screen. This was a brand new tank but already had major damage to the undergravel filter. I was the new guy on the scene; this was a test to see if I could handle the job, and I knew it.
The staff that was already there before my transfer thought this was a big joke, because after putting the turtles in the tank they had not been able to catch them to remove them, and were at a loss at what to do.
I thought about it a little while, bringing together my experiences in catching/trapping animals over many years. I made up a plan that I thought might work:
---starve the turtles for a few days so they would be hungry.
---bait my 4 foot diameter hoop net with a blue crab tied to the center of the netting. (The hoop net consisted of a fiberglass hoop which had half inch mesh nylon netting attached to hoop, forming a bag about a foot deep from the hoop. Lines went from 3 points 120 degrees apart for about 3-4 feet, to one rope to pull with. I had previously used this net to catch bullminnows, crabs, grass shrimp, etc., off local piers. I had made the net to function like a very large blue crab drop net.)
---lower hoop net into tank, and pull fast if a turtle tried to eat on the crab, or got near to the center of the net.
We got holding tanks ready to receive the turtles. I got the staff ready to handle the turtles one morning about an hour before we were to open up to the public for viewing, etc.
I lowered the baited hoop net into the main tank for the first time. Shortly a sea turtle tried to eat the crab tied in the center of the netting of the hoop net. I pulled up and brought up a sea turtle in the net. Within half an hour I got all 7 of the turtles out of the tank. The Curator and staff were somewhat amazed. I made my point. We released them all later.
Unfortunately I had to nurse this tank along due to damage of the filter area for several years (until 1996, when repair was started) before we got funding and the contracts awarded for the repair. External rapid sand filters and large diatom filters were employed to give extra biological and mechanical filtration capacity to the tank; additional chemical filtration was accomplished by adding crushed charcoal to the diatom filters. Repair was finished in 1997, and that is another story. The 40,000 gallon tank went 13 years without a cleaning of the undergravel filter; it was one of the largest undergravel filter tanks in operation.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
When I was transferred to run an aquarium in 1984, the staff on site had already put 7 loggerhead and Kemp's Ridley sea turtles into the new 40,000 gallon main tank. Most were brought in by shrimpers who had caught them in their nets. I have no idea why they decided to hold the turtles for a while or why they put them into the main tank. They all appeared healthy and free of obvious injuries. The turtles were already tearing the new main tank filter apart. At night they would try to wedge themselves under a tank decoration (fiberglass fake rocks or trawl board, etc.) or under the crushed coral substrate so they would be stable while resting or asleep. They were digging down to the screening holding up the crushed coral and tearing holes in the screen that allowed the crushed coral to fall to the base of the tank, causing "dead" spots in the crushed coral biological filter (water was no longer circulating through the pile of coral extending from the tank bottom to/or above the screen).
The Curator of the building requested I get the turtles out of the tank and release them back to the wild to stop further damage to the tank filter screen. This was a brand new tank but already had major damage to the undergravel filter. I was the new guy on the scene; this was a test to see if I could handle the job, and I knew it.
The staff that was already there before my transfer thought this was a big joke, because after putting the turtles in the tank they had not been able to catch them to remove them, and were at a loss at what to do.
I thought about it a little while, bringing together my experiences in catching/trapping animals over many years. I made up a plan that I thought might work:
---starve the turtles for a few days so they would be hungry.
---bait my 4 foot diameter hoop net with a blue crab tied to the center of the netting. (The hoop net consisted of a fiberglass hoop which had half inch mesh nylon netting attached to hoop, forming a bag about a foot deep from the hoop. Lines went from 3 points 120 degrees apart for about 3-4 feet, to one rope to pull with. I had previously used this net to catch bullminnows, crabs, grass shrimp, etc., off local piers. I had made the net to function like a very large blue crab drop net.)
---lower hoop net into tank, and pull fast if a turtle tried to eat on the crab, or got near to the center of the net.
We got holding tanks ready to receive the turtles. I got the staff ready to handle the turtles one morning about an hour before we were to open up to the public for viewing, etc.
I lowered the baited hoop net into the main tank for the first time. Shortly a sea turtle tried to eat the crab tied in the center of the netting of the hoop net. I pulled up and brought up a sea turtle in the net. Within half an hour I got all 7 of the turtles out of the tank. The Curator and staff were somewhat amazed. I made my point. We released them all later.
Unfortunately I had to nurse this tank along due to damage of the filter area for several years (until 1996, when repair was started) before we got funding and the contracts awarded for the repair. External rapid sand filters and large diatom filters were employed to give extra biological and mechanical filtration capacity to the tank; additional chemical filtration was accomplished by adding crushed charcoal to the diatom filters. Repair was finished in 1997, and that is another story. The 40,000 gallon tank went 13 years without a cleaning of the undergravel filter; it was one of the largest undergravel filter tanks in operation.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Opinion: Best Times to Collect Aquatic Litter
Opinion: Best Times to Collect Aquatic Litter
I have lived on two branches of a local bayou since 1973, and thus have had a lot of experience with aquatic litter. In addition I help with the annual beach clean-up each year.
Trash is much easier to pick up and should be picked up out of the drainage ditches BEFORE it is transported to bigger waters where it may sink or be hidden in marsh areas, or litters public beaches. It is easier to find the litter in a small stream than in a large body of water or hard- to-access marsh areas. We should try to get it before it goes into the marsh.
Litter clean-up should be done in local drainage ditches BEFORE rains, and on beaches and in marshes AFTER rains. All areas, during rains, get their litter moved about, so some areas may be cleaner (drainage ditches) and some areas may end up more littered (beaches, marshes) after a rain.
To stay ahead of the litter we should clean ditches before new rains, before more litter is delivered to marshes and beaches.
Litter Comments/Notes
1. In many cities and along roads they do not pick up the litter before they mow, and the litter is broken, or chopped up. The best solution would be to pick up the litter BEFORE mowing, but if budget/manpower constraints prevent picking up the litter, then chopping it up with mower blades does two things of benefit:
---chops litter into smaller pieces to help speed its break-down.
---chops litter into smaller pieces to lessen water collection and thus decrease mosquito production.
2. The flooding waters of Hurricane Isaac caused much trash to be dispersed by the flood waters. When glass containers travel downstream and hit hard objects (as drainage pipes) a lot of the glass containers break, leaving broken glass along the trail of the floodwaters as they go downstream.
3. It is ironic that floating trash may have a benefit to the world as such trash may give algae a substrate to attach to (a new habitat) so that algae near the open ocean surface can receive better sunlight and produce more oxygen to combat the increase in carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels. Marine scientists should do studies to determine IF oxygen production in floating litter areas is increased as opposed to open ocean areas without floating litter.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
See my article on aquatic litter at:
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/conservation/Lawler_Controlling_Aquatic_Litter.html
I have lived on two branches of a local bayou since 1973, and thus have had a lot of experience with aquatic litter. In addition I help with the annual beach clean-up each year.
Trash is much easier to pick up and should be picked up out of the drainage ditches BEFORE it is transported to bigger waters where it may sink or be hidden in marsh areas, or litters public beaches. It is easier to find the litter in a small stream than in a large body of water or hard- to-access marsh areas. We should try to get it before it goes into the marsh.
Litter clean-up should be done in local drainage ditches BEFORE rains, and on beaches and in marshes AFTER rains. All areas, during rains, get their litter moved about, so some areas may be cleaner (drainage ditches) and some areas may end up more littered (beaches, marshes) after a rain.
To stay ahead of the litter we should clean ditches before new rains, before more litter is delivered to marshes and beaches.
Litter Comments/Notes
1. In many cities and along roads they do not pick up the litter before they mow, and the litter is broken, or chopped up. The best solution would be to pick up the litter BEFORE mowing, but if budget/manpower constraints prevent picking up the litter, then chopping it up with mower blades does two things of benefit:
---chops litter into smaller pieces to help speed its break-down.
---chops litter into smaller pieces to lessen water collection and thus decrease mosquito production.
2. The flooding waters of Hurricane Isaac caused much trash to be dispersed by the flood waters. When glass containers travel downstream and hit hard objects (as drainage pipes) a lot of the glass containers break, leaving broken glass along the trail of the floodwaters as they go downstream.
3. It is ironic that floating trash may have a benefit to the world as such trash may give algae a substrate to attach to (a new habitat) so that algae near the open ocean surface can receive better sunlight and produce more oxygen to combat the increase in carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels. Marine scientists should do studies to determine IF oxygen production in floating litter areas is increased as opposed to open ocean areas without floating litter.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
See my article on aquatic litter at:
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/conservation/Lawler_Controlling_Aquatic_Litter.html
Sunday, September 2, 2012
Aquaculture Research in United States is Mostly a Joke on Taxpayer
Aquaculture Research in United States is Mostly a Joke on Taxpayer
I consider aquaculture research in the United States as a mostly throwing money away exercise, and a joke on those that fund such programs. Why? We research and perfect the aquaculture and disease/parasite control techniques for various species, and China or another country where land and labor are much cheaper, and laws are much less restrictive than in the United States use the knowledge we researched and paid for to raise the fish, shrimp, crayfish, etc. cheaply and then sell their aquaculture products to us. And they basically got the research done by us at little or no expense to them. They do not have to fund some research programs, but just read our reports and publications, and can do many of their aquaculture operations using our knowledge. I suspect they are laughing all the way to the bank.
A United States based aquaculture research program (and there are several university or government agency programs) should be able to PROVE that aquaculture of the species they are promoting is feasible, and profitable, in the United States, and should be able to produce at least one operating aquaculture firm they have helped that is making a profit in the United States. If they cannot produce such a firm, or an aquaculture plan proving a profit, people interested in doing new aquaculture projects should consider the species being promoted to not be feasible for a profitable aquaculture operation in the United States.
And even if the proposed project is presently feasible to do in the United States, another country with cheaper wages and other costs could copy the technology after its start in the United States and render the US aquaculture farmers obsolete (and maybe broke) very quickly with a cheaper product.
Various aquaculture operations I have been involved in either as a participant or as an advisor/researcher/parasitologist were based on: raising fathead minnows, guppies, tilapia, channel catfish, hybrid striped bass, redfish, pompano, cobia, speckled trout, red snapper, and bullminnows, and shedding blue crabs and crayfish. The USA channel catfish aquaculture operations mostly developed through research by Mississippi State University have been somewhat profitable in the United States through the years. Now many catfish farmers are struggling, or out of business. primarily due to increased feed costs.
Aquaculture projects in the United States can be profitable by catering to specialty demands: one operation I advised sold live tilapia to specialty Asian-influenced markets (in the United States) where they wanted live fish for the restaurant trade. The facility operated several years, barely getting by, until problems of predation by protected birds, high feed costs, and sabotage and a divorcing owner's wife helped put them out of business.
The reasons aquaculture is usually not profitable in the United States are many: high land costs, high property taxes, high labor costs, many zoning and land use restrictions, difficulty in getting enough water to operate the facility, high utility costs, high supply/feed costs, restrictive waste disposal and environmental regulations, predation by protected birds, not enough operating money, politics, theft, bad weather, sabotage, etc.
I have personally seen United States based aquaculture operations go under due to sabotage, mismanagement, not making a profit, lack of qualified workers, hurricane damage to facility, predation by protected birds, divorce, etc. For example, the opening of one valve during the night that drained a 30,000 gallon tank caused the death of about 35,000 pounds of tilapia and made a facility lose many thousands of dollars.
Aquaculture research in United States should be directed toward those species that CAN be cultured in the United States for a profit, and research money should be spent on aquaculture projects which WILL further our economy and create more jobs in America, not create jobs and profit for other countries.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
I reared/maintained many species of plants and aquatic organisms while being co-founder and co-chairman of a laboratory toxicology program, while running a public aquarium, while doing aquaculture projects, while having my own private farm, and while being a supplier of live fish and plants to the pet store trade during my career. My techniques to control Amyloodinium ocellatum on marine fishes in the 1980's enabled many aquaculture facilities and public aquariums to raise/display fishes free from death due to Amyloodinium ocellatum. See:
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Parasites.html
I consider aquaculture research in the United States as a mostly throwing money away exercise, and a joke on those that fund such programs. Why? We research and perfect the aquaculture and disease/parasite control techniques for various species, and China or another country where land and labor are much cheaper, and laws are much less restrictive than in the United States use the knowledge we researched and paid for to raise the fish, shrimp, crayfish, etc. cheaply and then sell their aquaculture products to us. And they basically got the research done by us at little or no expense to them. They do not have to fund some research programs, but just read our reports and publications, and can do many of their aquaculture operations using our knowledge. I suspect they are laughing all the way to the bank.
A United States based aquaculture research program (and there are several university or government agency programs) should be able to PROVE that aquaculture of the species they are promoting is feasible, and profitable, in the United States, and should be able to produce at least one operating aquaculture firm they have helped that is making a profit in the United States. If they cannot produce such a firm, or an aquaculture plan proving a profit, people interested in doing new aquaculture projects should consider the species being promoted to not be feasible for a profitable aquaculture operation in the United States.
And even if the proposed project is presently feasible to do in the United States, another country with cheaper wages and other costs could copy the technology after its start in the United States and render the US aquaculture farmers obsolete (and maybe broke) very quickly with a cheaper product.
Various aquaculture operations I have been involved in either as a participant or as an advisor/researcher/parasitologist were based on: raising fathead minnows, guppies, tilapia, channel catfish, hybrid striped bass, redfish, pompano, cobia, speckled trout, red snapper, and bullminnows, and shedding blue crabs and crayfish. The USA channel catfish aquaculture operations mostly developed through research by Mississippi State University have been somewhat profitable in the United States through the years. Now many catfish farmers are struggling, or out of business. primarily due to increased feed costs.
Aquaculture projects in the United States can be profitable by catering to specialty demands: one operation I advised sold live tilapia to specialty Asian-influenced markets (in the United States) where they wanted live fish for the restaurant trade. The facility operated several years, barely getting by, until problems of predation by protected birds, high feed costs, and sabotage and a divorcing owner's wife helped put them out of business.
The reasons aquaculture is usually not profitable in the United States are many: high land costs, high property taxes, high labor costs, many zoning and land use restrictions, difficulty in getting enough water to operate the facility, high utility costs, high supply/feed costs, restrictive waste disposal and environmental regulations, predation by protected birds, not enough operating money, politics, theft, bad weather, sabotage, etc.
I have personally seen United States based aquaculture operations go under due to sabotage, mismanagement, not making a profit, lack of qualified workers, hurricane damage to facility, predation by protected birds, divorce, etc. For example, the opening of one valve during the night that drained a 30,000 gallon tank caused the death of about 35,000 pounds of tilapia and made a facility lose many thousands of dollars.
Aquaculture research in United States should be directed toward those species that CAN be cultured in the United States for a profit, and research money should be spent on aquaculture projects which WILL further our economy and create more jobs in America, not create jobs and profit for other countries.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
I reared/maintained many species of plants and aquatic organisms while being co-founder and co-chairman of a laboratory toxicology program, while running a public aquarium, while doing aquaculture projects, while having my own private farm, and while being a supplier of live fish and plants to the pet store trade during my career. My techniques to control Amyloodinium ocellatum on marine fishes in the 1980's enabled many aquaculture facilities and public aquariums to raise/display fishes free from death due to Amyloodinium ocellatum. See:
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Diatomfilters.html
http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Parasites.html
Wednesday, August 22, 2012
Dr.Gordon Gunter
Dr. Gordon Gunter
See: http://www.moc.noaa.gov/gu/gunter.html
In 1970 I visited the Mississippi Gulf coast to see Dr. Gordon Gunter, Director, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi. He took me to lunch at Trilby's (a very good restaurant that no longer exists). I remember eating a stuffed tomato salad, but do not remember the rest of the meal.
Dr. Gunter gave me a chance at higher science and research after my major professor neglected/forgot to send a letter in my behalf. I was one of the last people hired by Dr. Gunter while he was Director, and was brought in as a post-doctoral student for a two-year contract. After that ended the next Director hired me full-time. And I went on to become a co-founder of GCRL Toxicology Program, co-chairman of GCRL Toxicology Program, Head of Experimental Organism Culture, and helped design the Toxicology Building and build the internal facilities, and later, Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi, doing design, building and remodeling of the Aquarium.
Dr. Gunter loved to tell stories to illustrate his point, and wrote excellent memos laced with humor. Now I wish I had somehow copied some of the memos he posted on the board for the staff to read (we had no copy machines on the grounds at that time). I remember one time he called some staff members as slow as a slow loris. Most of us had never heard of a slow loris and had to look it up. Dr. Gunter got a chuckle out of making us do extra "research."
As a post-doctoral student I was looking for interesting parasites so I was examining a lot of things caught. I found a sarcophagid fly larva in a lubber grasshopper (Lawler, 1977), and after some research found that Dr. Gunter had reported one from an anole. I asked him about it and he told me the story:
After work one day he was getting ready for bed, and sat on the bed with a drink. Shortly thereafter an anole that was crawling across the ceiling (not previously noticed) fell to the bed beside him. He looked at it, and inspected it. He could see a fly larva moving inside the now almost dead anole. He thought that odd, did some research later on, and later wrote a note on his observations. Serendipity from above .......
Dr. Gunter helped teach me several things (in no special order):
--- keep working
--- serendipity can advance science
--- be careful who you trust
--- do the best you can
--- enjoy your quest
--- seek the truth
--- keep fighting the bullies
--- keep asking questions
--- share your findings
--- seek science, not politics
--- always be observant
--- be open to new things
--- learn from those who came before
--- be fair to all
--- skin color does not make a scientist
--- protect the environment
--- make your own way; do not become a parasite
--- protect your records
--- look under every stone; always do your homework
--- and more .........
I will always remember Dr. Gordon Gunter as one of the founders of marine science in this country, a great scientist and great man, and how he gave a young graduate a chance. It was an honor to know him; he enabled me to have a career in marine biology. Thank you, Dr. Gunter!
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
Reference: Lawler, A. R. 1977. Notes on sarcophagids from the new host Romalea microptera, and from Terrapene carolina carolina. Gulf Research Repts. 6 (1): 69-70.
See: http://www.moc.noaa.gov/gu/gunter.html
In 1970 I visited the Mississippi Gulf coast to see Dr. Gordon Gunter, Director, Gulf Coast Research Laboratory, Ocean Springs, Mississippi. He took me to lunch at Trilby's (a very good restaurant that no longer exists). I remember eating a stuffed tomato salad, but do not remember the rest of the meal.
Dr. Gunter gave me a chance at higher science and research after my major professor neglected/forgot to send a letter in my behalf. I was one of the last people hired by Dr. Gunter while he was Director, and was brought in as a post-doctoral student for a two-year contract. After that ended the next Director hired me full-time. And I went on to become a co-founder of GCRL Toxicology Program, co-chairman of GCRL Toxicology Program, Head of Experimental Organism Culture, and helped design the Toxicology Building and build the internal facilities, and later, Aquarium Supervisor of the J L Scott Aquarium in Biloxi, doing design, building and remodeling of the Aquarium.
Dr. Gunter loved to tell stories to illustrate his point, and wrote excellent memos laced with humor. Now I wish I had somehow copied some of the memos he posted on the board for the staff to read (we had no copy machines on the grounds at that time). I remember one time he called some staff members as slow as a slow loris. Most of us had never heard of a slow loris and had to look it up. Dr. Gunter got a chuckle out of making us do extra "research."
As a post-doctoral student I was looking for interesting parasites so I was examining a lot of things caught. I found a sarcophagid fly larva in a lubber grasshopper (Lawler, 1977), and after some research found that Dr. Gunter had reported one from an anole. I asked him about it and he told me the story:
After work one day he was getting ready for bed, and sat on the bed with a drink. Shortly thereafter an anole that was crawling across the ceiling (not previously noticed) fell to the bed beside him. He looked at it, and inspected it. He could see a fly larva moving inside the now almost dead anole. He thought that odd, did some research later on, and later wrote a note on his observations. Serendipity from above .......
Dr. Gunter helped teach me several things (in no special order):
--- keep working
--- serendipity can advance science
--- be careful who you trust
--- do the best you can
--- enjoy your quest
--- seek the truth
--- keep fighting the bullies
--- keep asking questions
--- share your findings
--- seek science, not politics
--- always be observant
--- be open to new things
--- learn from those who came before
--- be fair to all
--- skin color does not make a scientist
--- protect the environment
--- make your own way; do not become a parasite
--- protect your records
--- look under every stone; always do your homework
--- and more .........
I will always remember Dr. Gordon Gunter as one of the founders of marine science in this country, a great scientist and great man, and how he gave a young graduate a chance. It was an honor to know him; he enabled me to have a career in marine biology. Thank you, Dr. Gunter!
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
Reference: Lawler, A. R. 1977. Notes on sarcophagids from the new host Romalea microptera, and from Terrapene carolina carolina. Gulf Research Repts. 6 (1): 69-70.
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
Bright Blindness in Sheep
Bright Blindness in Sheep
I have a wether sheep about 6 years old that apparently ate some bracken ferns ( Pteridium aquilinum [ Pteris aquilina ]) about 3 years ago and got "bright blindness" --- a condition where the pupils are permanently dilated (opened wide) and the sheep is blinded due to retinal degeneration and other eye problems from toxins in the brackens. One can recognize the condition by huge (open wide) pupils.
One on-line dictionary defines "bright-blindness" as a veterinary science term indicating blindness occuring in sheep after they have eaten bracken http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/bright-blindness .
A good summary of bright blindness can be found in the Merck Veterinary Manual. "Bright blindness in sheep is a progressive retinal atrophy that derives its name from the hyperreflectivity of the tapetum. Affected sheep are permanently blind and adopt a characteristic alert attitude. The pupils respond poorly to light, and ophthalmoscopic examination of sheep with advanced disease reveals narrowing of arteries and veins and a pale tapetum nigrum with fine cracks and spots of gray." http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/210400.htm .
I had to barricade HDPE-lined pond boundaries because I got tired of pulling a very heavy wet sheep out of the lined ponds. Now it runs into the barricades and turns away before falling into the ponds.
The sheep can eat on its own, and gets around by following its mom, or sticking close to some of the other sheep.
I learned the hard way that I need to make noise when approaching the afflicted sheep in the field. I almost got run over by a scared blind sheep a couple of times.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
I have a wether sheep about 6 years old that apparently ate some bracken ferns ( Pteridium aquilinum [ Pteris aquilina ]) about 3 years ago and got "bright blindness" --- a condition where the pupils are permanently dilated (opened wide) and the sheep is blinded due to retinal degeneration and other eye problems from toxins in the brackens. One can recognize the condition by huge (open wide) pupils.
One on-line dictionary defines "bright-blindness" as a veterinary science term indicating blindness occuring in sheep after they have eaten bracken http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/bright-blindness .
A good summary of bright blindness can be found in the Merck Veterinary Manual. "Bright blindness in sheep is a progressive retinal atrophy that derives its name from the hyperreflectivity of the tapetum. Affected sheep are permanently blind and adopt a characteristic alert attitude. The pupils respond poorly to light, and ophthalmoscopic examination of sheep with advanced disease reveals narrowing of arteries and veins and a pale tapetum nigrum with fine cracks and spots of gray." http://www.merckvetmanual.com/mvm/index.jsp?cfile=htm/bc/210400.htm .
I had to barricade HDPE-lined pond boundaries because I got tired of pulling a very heavy wet sheep out of the lined ponds. Now it runs into the barricades and turns away before falling into the ponds.
The sheep can eat on its own, and gets around by following its mom, or sticking close to some of the other sheep.
I learned the hard way that I need to make noise when approaching the afflicted sheep in the field. I almost got run over by a scared blind sheep a couple of times.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Monday, August 20, 2012
Thoughts on Release of Rescued Sea Turtle Hatchlings
Thoughts on Release of Rescued Sea Turtle Hatchlings
Recently people released several loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings in what appeared to be open water south of an island. They were rescued after being found inside a local marina.
I was involved in a similar happening in 1990; the article can be found at : http://www.seaturtle.org/mtn/archives/mtn52/mtn52p11.shtml . In this case the NMFS did the best thing, and released the hatchlings at floating Sargassum.
When one does a rescue of anything, in my opinion, they should not do a half-rescue, but a full-rescue. This means the hatchling sea turtles are returned to the environment at a safe haven (as much as can be for them = floating Sargassum weed) rather than being dumped in open waters with no cover where fish and birds can prey on them before they reach the safe haven. For example, when we rescue people from drowning we do not take them half way to shore and then let them swim the rest of the way by themselves, nor do we rescue people from mountains and drop them off half way down to let them struggle the rest of the way down by themselves. We take them to a safer place, out of danger.
It could be that in the instance above the people looked for Sargassum, but could not find any, and had to release the turtles where they were (due to fuel, weather, or time limitations). Such a release did save the turtles some energy and some swimming time to reach where they were headed, but they were put back into the environment exposed, and in potential danger.
Those that rescue hatchling sea turtles should complete the job and release them in a safer environment. This should be the policy for ALL future hatchling sea turtle rescues. Sea turtle hatchlings should be released into their normal habitat, Sargassum weed, or other suitable cover they utilize, so they have a greater chance of survival.
I worked with sea turtles for 15 years at the J L Scott Aquarium.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. , (C) 2012 --
Recently people released several loggerhead sea turtle hatchlings in what appeared to be open water south of an island. They were rescued after being found inside a local marina.
I was involved in a similar happening in 1990; the article can be found at : http://www.seaturtle.org/mtn/archives/mtn52/mtn52p11.shtml . In this case the NMFS did the best thing, and released the hatchlings at floating Sargassum.
When one does a rescue of anything, in my opinion, they should not do a half-rescue, but a full-rescue. This means the hatchling sea turtles are returned to the environment at a safe haven (as much as can be for them = floating Sargassum weed) rather than being dumped in open waters with no cover where fish and birds can prey on them before they reach the safe haven. For example, when we rescue people from drowning we do not take them half way to shore and then let them swim the rest of the way by themselves, nor do we rescue people from mountains and drop them off half way down to let them struggle the rest of the way down by themselves. We take them to a safer place, out of danger.
It could be that in the instance above the people looked for Sargassum, but could not find any, and had to release the turtles where they were (due to fuel, weather, or time limitations). Such a release did save the turtles some energy and some swimming time to reach where they were headed, but they were put back into the environment exposed, and in potential danger.
Those that rescue hatchling sea turtles should complete the job and release them in a safer environment. This should be the policy for ALL future hatchling sea turtle rescues. Sea turtle hatchlings should be released into their normal habitat, Sargassum weed, or other suitable cover they utilize, so they have a greater chance of survival.
I worked with sea turtles for 15 years at the J L Scott Aquarium.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D. , (C) 2012 --
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Theory: Human West Nile Virus Infections Are Related to Bird Feeders
Theory: Human West Nile Virus Infections Are Related to Bird Feeders
On 18 Aug 2012 Steve L. Shepard happened to mention that birds were not as concentrated in his yard as when he was feeding them (they are now spread out more). His words, plus the ongoing West Nile crisis in Dallas, gave me the idea for this theory: Human West Nile Virus Infections Are Related to Bird Feeders.
We know/believe:
--- Mosquitoes get West Nile virus from infected birds, or give virus to uninfected birds.
--- Mosquitoes that get the virus from an infected bird can bite humans and infect them with the virus.
--- Birds are closer together (more concentrated) and present themselves as more targets near feeders (than in areas with no feeders) to nearby mosquitoes.
--- Birds, like most animals, will not travel far from their "free lunch," or bird feeders, so they will rest/roost/stay/nest near the feeders.
--- Infected birds, possibly not feeling too well, will hang around bird feeders because they do not have to expend much energy in getting food. Bird feeders will draw the sick birds into the area around feeders more.
---Really sick birds that are no longer feeding, or moving much, will likely be close to the place of their last meal, which could be a bird feeder, and present themselves as easy targets for mosquitoes.
--- With bird feeders nearby birds do not have to work/fly/forage much to get their food, and rest more than birds having to hunt for their food. When they rest more, probably near the feeders, they present themselves as targets for mosquitoes a higher percentage of the day than foraging birds, and I would thus expect there to be a higher percentage of birds around bird feeders to be infected than those birds out foraging (it is harder for a mosquito to bite a moving/flying bird).
--- The mosquitoes near the bird feeders will have a greater chance of picking up the virus from the nearby birds than those mosquitoes out in "the sticks" that must prey on the fewer numbers, and/or more widely separated, of the more active birds out foraging (except near a large roost).
--- Various bird diseases can be encountered at, or even caused by, birdfeeders
http://wildlife.utah.gov/diseases/songbird_diseases.php and http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/pamphlets/coping_with_birdfeeder_diseases_pamplet.pdf , so it is not unusual to expect to find more birds, and thus more sick birds, around feeders.
Thus, some possible conclusions to my theory for humans are:
--- Bird feeders attract birds, which then attract mosquitoes that prey on the birds, which then increase the chances of birds/humans nearby getting infected with West Nile virus.
--- People who have bird feeders (or a feeder nearby in another yard) are subjecting themselves to a greater risk of getting West Nile virus than people who do not have bird feeders (or feeders nearby).
--- People who live near areas where large numbers of birds roost, or feed (garbage dumps), are at greater risk for West Nile virus infections.
Studies needed:
It would be nice to see virus researchers study aspects of the above to prove, or not, if my theory is correct (I suspect it is correct.).
It would be interesting to see a map overlay of Dallas noting all houses where people lived that got West Nile virus infections in Dallas AND locations of active bird feeders (garbage dumps, and roosts) within a half mile (+ or -) of those houses.
It would also be interesting to see if fatter, lazier, less active birds near feeders are easier to infect with the virus, and have a greater incidence of infection, than leaner, more active foraging birds.
Comments:
My present theory is but one factor of several that determine the spread of the West Nile virus. Probably the most important factor is the various waters of the area in question in which the mosquitoes reproduce. One must totally control mosquito reproduction to totally control West Nile virus. To decrease the number of human West Nile infections one must decrease the mosquito population, decrease the bird population, decrease or eliminate "hot spots" where birds concentrate near feeders, garbage dumps, and roosts, and/or have the humans change their habits so they get less mosquito bites (stay inside near dawn and dusk, use repellant, wear long clothing, dump standing water, etc.). Also see my previous proposal on mosquito control at: http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Mosquitoes.html
and the CDC Fact Sheet: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factSheet.htm .
West Nile virus has been shown to also infect horses, cats, bats, chipmunks, skunks, squirrels,
domestic rabbits http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/transmission.htm and dogs
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/wnv_dogs_cats.htm , so it may also be
possible that people having a large number of dogs, cats, or squirrels around them may
possibly be at a greater risk for getting the virus. But the CDC presently believes that dogs
and cats do not develop enough virus to infect mosquitoes biting them http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/wnv_dogs_cats.htm . Every possible
means of control of the West Nile virus should be practiced to keep the infections down.
Theory: People with bird feeders should stop feeding birds during the West Nile infection season each year to lessen their chances of getting the virus disease.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., retired, Aquarium Supervisor, J L Scott Aquarium, Biloxi
(C) 2012 --
Some more references on diseases at bird feeders:
http://birding.about.com/od/birdconservation/a/spreadillness.htm
http://www.birdfeeding.org/best-backyard-bird-feeding-practices/bird-safety/prevent-disease-at-your-bird-feeders.html
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/fact_sheets/coping_with_diseases_at_birdfeeders.jsp
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/AboutBirdsandFeeding/FAQsBirdFeeding.htm
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/AboutBirdsandFeeding/DiseasedBirds.htm
On 18 Aug 2012 Steve L. Shepard happened to mention that birds were not as concentrated in his yard as when he was feeding them (they are now spread out more). His words, plus the ongoing West Nile crisis in Dallas, gave me the idea for this theory: Human West Nile Virus Infections Are Related to Bird Feeders.
We know/believe:
--- Mosquitoes get West Nile virus from infected birds, or give virus to uninfected birds.
--- Mosquitoes that get the virus from an infected bird can bite humans and infect them with the virus.
--- Birds are closer together (more concentrated) and present themselves as more targets near feeders (than in areas with no feeders) to nearby mosquitoes.
--- Birds, like most animals, will not travel far from their "free lunch," or bird feeders, so they will rest/roost/stay/nest near the feeders.
--- Infected birds, possibly not feeling too well, will hang around bird feeders because they do not have to expend much energy in getting food. Bird feeders will draw the sick birds into the area around feeders more.
---Really sick birds that are no longer feeding, or moving much, will likely be close to the place of their last meal, which could be a bird feeder, and present themselves as easy targets for mosquitoes.
--- With bird feeders nearby birds do not have to work/fly/forage much to get their food, and rest more than birds having to hunt for their food. When they rest more, probably near the feeders, they present themselves as targets for mosquitoes a higher percentage of the day than foraging birds, and I would thus expect there to be a higher percentage of birds around bird feeders to be infected than those birds out foraging (it is harder for a mosquito to bite a moving/flying bird).
--- The mosquitoes near the bird feeders will have a greater chance of picking up the virus from the nearby birds than those mosquitoes out in "the sticks" that must prey on the fewer numbers, and/or more widely separated, of the more active birds out foraging (except near a large roost).
--- Various bird diseases can be encountered at, or even caused by, birdfeeders
http://wildlife.utah.gov/diseases/songbird_diseases.php and http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/pamphlets/coping_with_birdfeeder_diseases_pamplet.pdf , so it is not unusual to expect to find more birds, and thus more sick birds, around feeders.
Thus, some possible conclusions to my theory for humans are:
--- Bird feeders attract birds, which then attract mosquitoes that prey on the birds, which then increase the chances of birds/humans nearby getting infected with West Nile virus.
--- People who have bird feeders (or a feeder nearby in another yard) are subjecting themselves to a greater risk of getting West Nile virus than people who do not have bird feeders (or feeders nearby).
--- People who live near areas where large numbers of birds roost, or feed (garbage dumps), are at greater risk for West Nile virus infections.
Studies needed:
It would be nice to see virus researchers study aspects of the above to prove, or not, if my theory is correct (I suspect it is correct.).
It would be interesting to see a map overlay of Dallas noting all houses where people lived that got West Nile virus infections in Dallas AND locations of active bird feeders (garbage dumps, and roosts) within a half mile (+ or -) of those houses.
It would also be interesting to see if fatter, lazier, less active birds near feeders are easier to infect with the virus, and have a greater incidence of infection, than leaner, more active foraging birds.
Comments:
My present theory is but one factor of several that determine the spread of the West Nile virus. Probably the most important factor is the various waters of the area in question in which the mosquitoes reproduce. One must totally control mosquito reproduction to totally control West Nile virus. To decrease the number of human West Nile infections one must decrease the mosquito population, decrease the bird population, decrease or eliminate "hot spots" where birds concentrate near feeders, garbage dumps, and roosts, and/or have the humans change their habits so they get less mosquito bites (stay inside near dawn and dusk, use repellant, wear long clothing, dump standing water, etc.). Also see my previous proposal on mosquito control at: http://www.aquarticles.com/articles/management/Lawler_Mosquitoes.html
and the CDC Fact Sheet: http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/wnv_factSheet.htm .
West Nile virus has been shown to also infect horses, cats, bats, chipmunks, skunks, squirrels,
domestic rabbits http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/transmission.htm and dogs
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/wnv_dogs_cats.htm , so it may also be
possible that people having a large number of dogs, cats, or squirrels around them may
possibly be at a greater risk for getting the virus. But the CDC presently believes that dogs
and cats do not develop enough virus to infect mosquitoes biting them http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/westnile/qa/wnv_dogs_cats.htm . Every possible
means of control of the West Nile virus should be practiced to keep the infections down.
Theory: People with bird feeders should stop feeding birds during the West Nile infection season each year to lessen their chances of getting the virus disease.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., retired, Aquarium Supervisor, J L Scott Aquarium, Biloxi
(C) 2012 --
Some more references on diseases at bird feeders:
http://birding.about.com/od/birdconservation/a/spreadillness.htm
http://www.birdfeeding.org/best-backyard-bird-feeding-practices/bird-safety/prevent-disease-at-your-bird-feeders.html
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/publications/fact_sheets/coping_with_diseases_at_birdfeeders.jsp
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/AboutBirdsandFeeding/FAQsBirdFeeding.htm
http://www.birds.cornell.edu/pfw/AboutBirdsandFeeding/DiseasedBirds.htm
Tuesday, August 14, 2012
Hawaiian Punch Attracts Bees
Hawaiian Punch Attracts Bees
I had bee hives on my farm. Several times after drinking Hawaiian Punch I walked outside and got one or more bees trying to get to my mouth/nose area. Apparently the bees were attracted to the juice drink smell.
If I rinsed my mouth thoroughly with water after drinking the juice drink and before I went outside, there were no bees attracted.
Hawaiian Punch apparently has a smell similar to nectar, or another food source of bees.
Those allergic to bee stings should not drink any drink, or wear anything applied to the skin, before going outside that might attract bees. Hitting at them may cause them to sting.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
I had bee hives on my farm. Several times after drinking Hawaiian Punch I walked outside and got one or more bees trying to get to my mouth/nose area. Apparently the bees were attracted to the juice drink smell.
If I rinsed my mouth thoroughly with water after drinking the juice drink and before I went outside, there were no bees attracted.
Hawaiian Punch apparently has a smell similar to nectar, or another food source of bees.
Those allergic to bee stings should not drink any drink, or wear anything applied to the skin, before going outside that might attract bees. Hitting at them may cause them to sting.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Sunday, June 24, 2012
Cheap Roach Bait
Cheap Roach Bait
I got tired of paying for roach baits that did not appear to work, and I could see little evidence of them being eaten on, or find dead roaches. I had previously used boric acid powder, which had limited success in killing roaches. Since spraying in my house would also expose me to the pesticides, I came up with a bait that works for roaches. The bait will save one a lot of money over commercial roach baits/sprays, and help save one's health because pesticides are not sprayed in the house. The bait is placed in old plastic roach bait containers or on small pieces of plastic or foam (from foam plates) with a knife and put on/under things out of the walking areas, usually in rooms that also have water (kitchen, bathrooms).
Roach Bait (by volume)
--Smooth peanut butter ------ 2 parts
--Boric acid powder ------------1-2 parts
--Soybean oil --------------------1-2 parts ( enough oil to get a thinner product than peanut butter, and a smooth, moist spread) (can also use peanut oil, canola oil, corn oil, etc.)
Mix well to incorporate boric acid powder fairly evenly into peanut butter and oil. Put bait in old roach bait containers that are cut and opened up for easy roach access, or on pieces of plastic or foam. Place baits near areas where roaches have been seen or suspected, and especially in the kitchen and bathrooms. Try to decrease previous roach food sources (clean house well) so they choose the bait.
The roaches ate a lot of the bait the first night the bait was put out in the house and shop. After the initial introduction of the bait the consumption of the bait was variable, depending on the number of roaches alive in the house, location of baits, number of baits put out, etc.
After eating the bait slower-moving roaches were encountered (they were easier to swat at night). Then a few were found on the floor that were lying on their side or back with legs extended, and quivering. They appeared to be in tetany. Later on, while cleaning in the house I found dead roaches inside boxes, under things, and in various other hiding places where they had died.
Keep bait out at all times to be available to recently hatched young, and to new roaches entering house (down chimney, under doors, via windows, through vents, etc.). Bait will be needed after egg cases hatch and the new young get more active.
One can poison roaches for years with this bait with what it costs for one commercial home spraying job, and you can save yourself and family from exposure to pesticide spray.
Adrian R. Lawler. Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
I got tired of paying for roach baits that did not appear to work, and I could see little evidence of them being eaten on, or find dead roaches. I had previously used boric acid powder, which had limited success in killing roaches. Since spraying in my house would also expose me to the pesticides, I came up with a bait that works for roaches. The bait will save one a lot of money over commercial roach baits/sprays, and help save one's health because pesticides are not sprayed in the house. The bait is placed in old plastic roach bait containers or on small pieces of plastic or foam (from foam plates) with a knife and put on/under things out of the walking areas, usually in rooms that also have water (kitchen, bathrooms).
Roach Bait (by volume)
--Smooth peanut butter ------ 2 parts
--Boric acid powder ------------1-2 parts
--Soybean oil --------------------1-2 parts ( enough oil to get a thinner product than peanut butter, and a smooth, moist spread) (can also use peanut oil, canola oil, corn oil, etc.)
Mix well to incorporate boric acid powder fairly evenly into peanut butter and oil. Put bait in old roach bait containers that are cut and opened up for easy roach access, or on pieces of plastic or foam. Place baits near areas where roaches have been seen or suspected, and especially in the kitchen and bathrooms. Try to decrease previous roach food sources (clean house well) so they choose the bait.
The roaches ate a lot of the bait the first night the bait was put out in the house and shop. After the initial introduction of the bait the consumption of the bait was variable, depending on the number of roaches alive in the house, location of baits, number of baits put out, etc.
After eating the bait slower-moving roaches were encountered (they were easier to swat at night). Then a few were found on the floor that were lying on their side or back with legs extended, and quivering. They appeared to be in tetany. Later on, while cleaning in the house I found dead roaches inside boxes, under things, and in various other hiding places where they had died.
Keep bait out at all times to be available to recently hatched young, and to new roaches entering house (down chimney, under doors, via windows, through vents, etc.). Bait will be needed after egg cases hatch and the new young get more active.
One can poison roaches for years with this bait with what it costs for one commercial home spraying job, and you can save yourself and family from exposure to pesticide spray.
Adrian R. Lawler. Ph.D., (C) 2012 --
Sunday, March 4, 2012
Former J L Scott Aquarium Site
Former J L Scott Aquarium Site
The only thing of the J L Scott Aquarium remaining after the water surge of hurricane Katrina (2005) is its front (visitors) parking lot (P). The former site of the building is indicated (J L Scott). The employee parking lot (E) at the west end of the building was on a hill with the building, and both the hill and the employee parking lot no longer exist.
Higher powers decided the building was not worth repairing after Katrina. The building previously underwent various repairs in 1986 after hurricane Elena (1985). Those repairs to roof, windows, and water-damaged areas took longer than we thought it would take. And the repairs after the 1985 storm were very minor compared to Katrina damage.
The Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge was rebuilt after severe damage by surge waters of hurricane Katrina.
It is always distressing to cross the Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge and see the empty spot where the J L Scott Aquarium used to be and where I worked for 15 years, or over half my marine biologist work life working for others. The building had its walls blown out, roof badly damaged, wood trim torn off the plexiglass larger tanks, and many tanks destroyed or overflowed with surge waters, and supplemental tank equipment dislodged or destroyed. When they tore down the damaged building they even took the 13-foot high built-up hill the building was built on .... so it is now a flat site again.
I still do not understand why the hill was removed, too. Its removal left this site more susceptible to flooding, now being 13 feet lower. Why would people want to decrease the height of flood-prone land ?
The site was latest used as a staging area for equipment used in combatting the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The present property owner was not determined.
An article in the Mississippi Press for 2 March 2012, page C-1 noted that architects have been selected for designing a new facility at Cedar Point in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., retired, Aquarium Supervisor, J L Scott Aquarium, (C) 2012 --
The only thing of the J L Scott Aquarium remaining after the water surge of hurricane Katrina (2005) is its front (visitors) parking lot (P). The former site of the building is indicated (J L Scott). The employee parking lot (E) at the west end of the building was on a hill with the building, and both the hill and the employee parking lot no longer exist.
Higher powers decided the building was not worth repairing after Katrina. The building previously underwent various repairs in 1986 after hurricane Elena (1985). Those repairs to roof, windows, and water-damaged areas took longer than we thought it would take. And the repairs after the 1985 storm were very minor compared to Katrina damage.
The Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge was rebuilt after severe damage by surge waters of hurricane Katrina.
It is always distressing to cross the Biloxi-Ocean Springs bridge and see the empty spot where the J L Scott Aquarium used to be and where I worked for 15 years, or over half my marine biologist work life working for others. The building had its walls blown out, roof badly damaged, wood trim torn off the plexiglass larger tanks, and many tanks destroyed or overflowed with surge waters, and supplemental tank equipment dislodged or destroyed. When they tore down the damaged building they even took the 13-foot high built-up hill the building was built on .... so it is now a flat site again.
I still do not understand why the hill was removed, too. Its removal left this site more susceptible to flooding, now being 13 feet lower. Why would people want to decrease the height of flood-prone land ?
The site was latest used as a staging area for equipment used in combatting the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The present property owner was not determined.
An article in the Mississippi Press for 2 March 2012, page C-1 noted that architects have been selected for designing a new facility at Cedar Point in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Adrian R. Lawler, Ph.D., retired, Aquarium Supervisor, J L Scott Aquarium, (C) 2012 --
Monday, February 27, 2012
Dehorn Goats with Bands and File
Dehorn Goats with Bands and File
My farm had field fence surrounding it when I bought it years ago. Hurricane Elena in 1985 felled so many trees that tore down the fences in so many places I had to sell all my cows and bull because the fences could not contain them, and I could not drop everything to do extensive fence repair. After the fences were repaired later I restocked the farm with goats and sheep.
I soon found out that horned goats got caught in the field fence when they stuck their heads through the fence mesh to eat on the other side of the fence and their horns caught on the horizontal portion of the fencing wire mesh, and they could not pull their heads back through the fencing. I had to untangle several goats before I thought of a possible way to solve the problem ...... dehorn the goats. After I lost one goat caught in the fence to a broken neck I decided to try dehorning the goats.
I was not aware if any others (years ago) had tried this method, but I decided to give it a try. I knew castrating bands would cause testicles and tails to lose their blood supply and they would eventually fall off. I had used bands on cattle, sheep, and goats. I thought why not give it a try on mature goat horns (bands can "cut" through the bones of tails, so maybe they would also do horns). I initially put the constrictor bands on the horns close to the skull; but most moved toward the tip of the horn and came off. I then thought of using a round quarter-inch file to make a groove on at least two sides of the horn to have a place for the band to grip and stay. The groove enabled the bands to stay on; after a length of time (about 3 weeks) one goat bumped its horns at a feeding trough and one horn fell off, releasing a fair amount of blood. The other fell off later without much blood loss. The horn stubs healed over and the goat went about its daily business without getting its head caught in the fence again.
I find that researching the internet now (2012) that some were having problems keeping the bands on the horns. I suggest using my trick of years ago --- a round file to make grooves to hold the bands in place near the base of the horns.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
My farm had field fence surrounding it when I bought it years ago. Hurricane Elena in 1985 felled so many trees that tore down the fences in so many places I had to sell all my cows and bull because the fences could not contain them, and I could not drop everything to do extensive fence repair. After the fences were repaired later I restocked the farm with goats and sheep.
I soon found out that horned goats got caught in the field fence when they stuck their heads through the fence mesh to eat on the other side of the fence and their horns caught on the horizontal portion of the fencing wire mesh, and they could not pull their heads back through the fencing. I had to untangle several goats before I thought of a possible way to solve the problem ...... dehorn the goats. After I lost one goat caught in the fence to a broken neck I decided to try dehorning the goats.
I was not aware if any others (years ago) had tried this method, but I decided to give it a try. I knew castrating bands would cause testicles and tails to lose their blood supply and they would eventually fall off. I had used bands on cattle, sheep, and goats. I thought why not give it a try on mature goat horns (bands can "cut" through the bones of tails, so maybe they would also do horns). I initially put the constrictor bands on the horns close to the skull; but most moved toward the tip of the horn and came off. I then thought of using a round quarter-inch file to make a groove on at least two sides of the horn to have a place for the band to grip and stay. The groove enabled the bands to stay on; after a length of time (about 3 weeks) one goat bumped its horns at a feeding trough and one horn fell off, releasing a fair amount of blood. The other fell off later without much blood loss. The horn stubs healed over and the goat went about its daily business without getting its head caught in the fence again.
I find that researching the internet now (2012) that some were having problems keeping the bands on the horns. I suggest using my trick of years ago --- a round file to make grooves to hold the bands in place near the base of the horns.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Sunday, February 19, 2012
Scarab Larvae in Gardening Containers
Scarab Larvae in Gardening Containers
I recently noticed that four of my container garden beds had surface soil being disrupted almost daily. Two of the beds contained onions, the third had leaf lettuce, and the last had rutabaga. Part of the regular garden (not in containers) also had evidence of soil disruption and 3/8 inch to over 1/2 inch holes at the surface. All of the disruption noted was on the east side of the garden area.
One of the onion beds was really doing poorly, with the onions wilting and dying. I suspected scarab beetle larvae. I transplanted (10 Feb 12) the onions to another container; they all lacked roots or had roots badly damaged.
I removed (15 Feb 12) the dirt from the onion container (an inner drum from a washing machine) and recovered 55 large 1 1/2 to 2 inch long scarab beetle larvae (grubs). All the larvae were at, or near, the bottom of the container, about a foot below the surface of the dirt. None where found touching each other. The larvae were not identified but I suspect they were larvae of green june beetles, which I had previously seen in the garden area.
These larvae were highly disruptive in containers:
---Turning over surface soil almost nightly.
---Uprooting sprouting, or young plants.
---Eating on plant roots and either weakening plants or killing plants.
The 55 grubs were in a container 21 inches in diameter; the surface area was pi r squared or 3.1416 x 10.5 squared = 346.36 square inches = 2.40 square feet. So there were 22.92 grubs per square foot. This would appear to be a high concentration, probably because a batch, or more, of eggs were laid in the container and the larvae were thus trapped inside the container during their larval life.
An estimate of the number of grubs in the regular garden soil from a count of the holes at the surface gave 0-2 grubs per square foot of garden. In prior years the grubs were 0-1 per square foot in the garden area.
It is not known why grub production appears to have increased in 2011. I have raised part of my garden in containers for over 50 years, and never previously had such a problem with scarab larvae.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
I recently noticed that four of my container garden beds had surface soil being disrupted almost daily. Two of the beds contained onions, the third had leaf lettuce, and the last had rutabaga. Part of the regular garden (not in containers) also had evidence of soil disruption and 3/8 inch to over 1/2 inch holes at the surface. All of the disruption noted was on the east side of the garden area.
One of the onion beds was really doing poorly, with the onions wilting and dying. I suspected scarab beetle larvae. I transplanted (10 Feb 12) the onions to another container; they all lacked roots or had roots badly damaged.
I removed (15 Feb 12) the dirt from the onion container (an inner drum from a washing machine) and recovered 55 large 1 1/2 to 2 inch long scarab beetle larvae (grubs). All the larvae were at, or near, the bottom of the container, about a foot below the surface of the dirt. None where found touching each other. The larvae were not identified but I suspect they were larvae of green june beetles, which I had previously seen in the garden area.
These larvae were highly disruptive in containers:
---Turning over surface soil almost nightly.
---Uprooting sprouting, or young plants.
---Eating on plant roots and either weakening plants or killing plants.
The 55 grubs were in a container 21 inches in diameter; the surface area was pi r squared or 3.1416 x 10.5 squared = 346.36 square inches = 2.40 square feet. So there were 22.92 grubs per square foot. This would appear to be a high concentration, probably because a batch, or more, of eggs were laid in the container and the larvae were thus trapped inside the container during their larval life.
An estimate of the number of grubs in the regular garden soil from a count of the holes at the surface gave 0-2 grubs per square foot of garden. In prior years the grubs were 0-1 per square foot in the garden area.
It is not known why grub production appears to have increased in 2011. I have raised part of my garden in containers for over 50 years, and never previously had such a problem with scarab larvae.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
Sunday, February 5, 2012
Coyote Hit by Car
Coyote Hit by Car
On 7 Jan 2012 I took pictures of a young female coyote apparently hit by a car. It had extensive road rash, sections of skin rubbed off of both sides of the body, from apparently getting dragged along the road by a car. Although the coyote had a rank odor about it, none of the many wounds appeared to be infected. The wounds were dry and healing. Scientists might want to look at the immune system of coyotes to find out why so many wounds were not infected in this one.
The coyote appeared to have adult teeth, and since they were very clean-looking the coyote is presumed to be a young adult. It was estimated to weigh 30-40 pounds.
This was the first coyote I have seen in this area of south Mississippi (I have lived in Ocean Springs, Mississippi for over 40 years.).
Three pictures are included below.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
On 7 Jan 2012 I took pictures of a young female coyote apparently hit by a car. It had extensive road rash, sections of skin rubbed off of both sides of the body, from apparently getting dragged along the road by a car. Although the coyote had a rank odor about it, none of the many wounds appeared to be infected. The wounds were dry and healing. Scientists might want to look at the immune system of coyotes to find out why so many wounds were not infected in this one.
The coyote appeared to have adult teeth, and since they were very clean-looking the coyote is presumed to be a young adult. It was estimated to weigh 30-40 pounds.
This was the first coyote I have seen in this area of south Mississippi (I have lived in Ocean Springs, Mississippi for over 40 years.).
Three pictures are included below.
Adrian R. Lawler, (C) 2012 --
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