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The effects of light intensity on growth and survival of cuttlefish (sepia officinalis) hatchlings and juveniles

Publication . Sykes, António V.; Quintana, Daniel; Andrade, José Pedro

Cephalopods, particularly the European cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis), are considered to be potential species for aquaculture diversification due to their high growth rates in captivity (Domingues, Sykes & Andrade 2001; Domingues, Bettencourt & Guerra 2006) and great demand as food throughout different regions of the world (FAO 2009). Nonetheless, cuttlefish differ from fish in several biological aspects, thus requiring different approaches to solve similar or new problems associated with their culture. For instance, the hatchling stage has been identified as the most problematic due to mortality and the need of live prey. Several factors might influence growth and mortality of cuttlefish in captivity, such as culture conditions and nutritional requirements of the species. According to Downing and Litvak (1999), there is a need to understand the physical and biological factors that act on developing fish larvae to create protocols that maximize survival and growth under culture conditions. It is known that system design may promote stress and lower animal welfare in finfish (Conte 2004) and the same seems to apply to cuttlefish.

2014Journal article

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Lipid characterization of both wild and cultured eggs of cuttlefish (Sepia officinalisL.) throughout the embryonic development

Publication . Sykes, António V.; Alamansa, E.; Lorenzo, A.; Andrade, José Pedro

The present work reports a characterization of mean wet weight and moisture, the lipid class and fatty acid (FA) composition from the total lipids (TL), of both culture and wild eggs of the cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis, throughout the embryonic development. Additionally, reproductive data, such as the number of spawnings, number and mean weight of eggs and duration of spawning period of cultured cuttlefish is provided. Both types of eggs were similar in mean wet weight, moisture content, TL content and lipid composition throughout embryonic development.

2009Journal article

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The effects of feeding with shrimp or fish fry on growth and mantle lipid composition of juvenile and adult cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis)

Publication . Almansa, Eduardo; Domingues, Pedro; Sykes, António V.; Tejera, Noemi; Lorenzo, António; Andrade, José Pedro

In the present study, cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis) aged 60-day-old (age-group I) and 120-day-old (age-group II) were fed with live shrimp and live fish fry for 60 days, in order to study the diet influence on growth, mantle lipid composition, and astaxanthin content in the skin. The most noteworthy difference was the higher growth observed in shrimp-fed cuttlefish with respect to fishfed cuttlefish in both age groups. Total lipids (TL), lipid classes (LC) and their associated fatty acids (FA) from both diets and mantle of cuttlefish were analysed. The lipid profiles of both diets were clearly different in their LC distribution, with higher levels of Polar Lipids (PL) in shrimp with respect to fish fry. However, both diets did not show outstanding differences in the FA composition of TL except for 20:5n-3 (EPA), which was higher in shrimp than in fish fry. With respect to lipid composition of cuttlefish mantle, the TL content and cholesterol (CHO) percentage increased with age, while phosphatidylinositol (PI) and phosphatidylcholine (PC) percentage decreased. On the other hand, phosphatidylserine (PS), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) and PC percentages in both cuttlefish age groups were also affected by the different diets, although this difference was higher in agegroup I. The general pattern of fatty acid composition of TL in the mantle of cuttlefish was similar in all groups studied. It is remarkable the low levels of monoene FAs in both age-group cuttlefish mantle, despite of the high level of this FA group in both diets, which suggests that these FAs are not stored in the mantle. An opposite tendency was observed regarding the n-3 HUFA, especially 22:6n-3 (DHA) which remained constant despite the different age or diet. High levels of astaxanthin were found in shrimp with respect to fish, but this was only reflected on skin accumulation in age-group I, showing no differences in age-group II. This suggests differences in the astaxanthin metabolism according to the age. The results suggest that the growth differences observed in shrimp-fed cuttlefish with respect to fish-fed cuttlefish were not reflected in outstanding differences in mantle composition.

2006Journal article

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The effects of tank colours on the growth and survival of cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis, Linnaeus 1758) hatchlings and juveniles

Publication . Sykes, António V.; Domingues, Pedro M.; Márquez, Lorenzo; Andrade, José Pedro

The e¡ects of di¡erent tank colours (white, yellow sandy and black) on the growth, mortality and biomass production were studied for hatchling and early juvenile cuttle¢sh. For hatchlings, the use of di¡erent colour tanks did not promote di¡erences in growth due to the higher variability (standard deviation) found in the white- and sand-coloured tanks. Black tanks promoted the lowest and highest values for total mortality and biomass respectively. For juveniles, the use of di¡erent tank colours promoted di¡erent growth (Po0.05), but not mortality. Black tanks promoted the best results in terms of growth and biomass. The results obtained in the present study advise the use of black (or dark colour) tanks in the hatchling and early juvenile stages to reduce the standard deviations associated with growth, mortality and biomass production. This will contribute to minimize problems associated with slow and fast growers and competition.

2011Journal article

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Cuttlefish culture: state of art and future trends

Publication . Sykes, António V.; Domingues, Pedro M.; Correia, M.; Andrade, José Pedro

The present article provides an overview of cuttlefish culture, its current state of art, and future trends. Present cuttlefish culture related research, recently developed technologies (like culture systems, maternity/nursery and juvenile and adult proceedings) are described. Finally, current problems and prospects for future research are discussed.

2006Journal article

Open Access