Chris G Carter

• Professor
• University of Tasmania

Cannibalism in high‐value crustacean species, such as mud crab, clawed lobster, and spiny lobster, is a major impediment to commercial aquaculture due to its significant impact on survival and, hence, production. Knowledge of the nutrition acquired from consuming conspecifics may inform whether nutrient limitation is a primary reason for cannibalis...

The effect of different dietary protein levels on apparent feed intake, apparent digestibility, body composition, nutrient retention, and growth efficiency of juvenile slipper lobster (Thenus australiensis) were evaluated for 74 days. Three isoenergetic and isolipidic feeds were formulated with crude protein levels of 445, 490, and 551 g kg⁻¹ DM, d...

Background A genotype-by-environment (G × E) interaction is defined as genotypes responding differently to different environments. In salmonids, G × E interactions can occur in different rearing conditions, including changes in salinity or temperature. However, water flow, an important variable that can influence metabolism, has yet to be considere...

The immense production of fishmeal and fish oil is dramatically intensifying the severe state of pelagic fisheries overexploitation. The latter in conjunction with the increasing demand for low‐cost protein‐rich food supply prompt aquaculture to employ new practice. Several novel dietary ingredients are currently under evaluation for potential inco...

A healthy skeletal system is fundamental to fish welfare and performance and a key physiological feature of a robust fish. The presence of skeletal deformities in farmed salmonids is a persistent welfare problem in aquaculture, and one which threatens to impede industry growth. Deformities of the fine bones of fish, such as ribs and intermuscular b...

This study was conducted to verify the essentiality of dietary cholesterol for early juvenile slipper lobster, Thenus australiensis (initial weight 4.50 ± 0.72 g, mean ± SD, CV = 0.16), and to explore the potential for interactions between dietary cholesterol and phospholipid. An 8-week experiment was conducted using six experimental feeds containi...

Exercise regimes provide a promising opportunity to enhance production performance during hatchery rearing, but exercise-enhanced traits are presently poorly understood in Chinook salmon. In addition, spinal health can be a concern in some farms in New Zealand and unfavourable correlations between higher condition factor and spinal curvature have b...

The “messy” feeding behaviour of spiny lobsters remains an obstacle for formulated feed development. This study examined the relationship between feeding efficiency and feed waste by juvenile spiny lobster, Sagmariasus verreauxi, fed different formulated pellet diameters or lengths across two separate experiments. Feed texture (hard and dry pellet,...

The present study successfully combined a stoichiometric bioenergetic approach with an endpoint stochastic model to simultaneously determine specific dynamic action, metabolic substrate use and whole-body protein synthesis in juvenile slipper lobster Thenus australiensis. Juvenile lobsters were fasted for 48 h to investigate routine metabolism befo...

Simple Summary Aquaculture plays a key role in many emerging economies. Sources of fish for human consumption now exceed those from capture fisheries. However, the high cost of food to feed fish limits investment returns. Physiological inefficiencies in the way fish digest and assimilate nutrients and energy from food can be improved to lower the a...

Fed aquaculture is one of the fastest‐growing and most valuable food production industries in the world. The efficiency with which farmed fish convert feed into biomass influences both environmental impact and economic revenue. Salmonid species, such as king salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), exhibit high levels of plasticity in vital rates such as...

This poster was submitted to the Blue Economy CRC's 2023 Participants workshop to present how my PhD research can impact the industry. For more information visit: https://blueeconomycrc.com.au/2023-participant-workshop/

Gut microbiota play important roles in fish health and growth performance and the microbiome in fish has been shown to be a biomarker for stress. In this study, we surveyed the change of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) gut and water microbiota in freshwater recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for 7 months and evaluated how gut microbi...

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses were used to evaluate the contribution of five protein sources to the growth of juvenile slipper lobster Thenus australiensis. Protein sources tested were fish meal, krill meal, lupin meal, soybean meal and a squid by-product meal. A commercial in confidence basal mix was utilised to produce five experime...

Feed efficiency (FE) is a critical phenotype for aquaculture sustainability, yet it is poorly understood at the molecular level. In this study, the molecular basis of FE was investigated using a multi-omics approach to integrate proteome-level data and metabolites associated with differences in feed efficiency. To achieve this, Chinook salmon (Onco...

Simple Summary Sensory stimuli including olfactory, visual, acoustic and tactile input, are important aspects of feed exposure and optimisation of feeding schedules. These aspects were investigated in our study, with a focus on the effect of feed frequency (one, two, four, eight, sixteen and thirty-two feed supplies per day) on survival, growth and...

Aquaculture is critical for ensuring global food and nutrition security, and fed-aquaculture, which depends on formulated nutritionally balanced manufactured feeds, must be sustainable. Single-cell ingredients (SCI) are predicted to play a significant role in future aquafeeds and have the potential to underpin sustainable fed-aquaculture for many s...

Understanding the molecular mechanisms that underlie differences in feed efficiency (FE) is an important step toward optimising growth and achieving sustainable salmonid aquaculture. In this study, the liver and white muscle proteomes of feed efficient (EFF) and inefficient (INEFF) Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) reared in seawater were i...

Species redistributions are one of the most prevalent changes observed in oceans worldwide due to climate change. One of the major challenges is being able to predict temperature-driven changes to species interactions and the outcome of these changes for marine communities due to the complex nature of indirect effects. In the ocean-warming hotspot...

In groups of fish, there is often interindividual and intraindividual variation in feed intake. To better understand mechanisms that underpin feed intake, the proteomic profiles of brain, liver, and intestine in high feed intake (HFI) and low feed intake (LFI) Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) were investigated. Liquid chromatography-tandem...

Suitable feeds and feeding regimes are crucial to hatchery success and are often complex and species-specific. This review considers the role of formulated feeds in aquaculture hatcheries and early production. It will focus mainly on fish (finfish) and crustacean aquaculture. Important aquaculture fish include species with either freshwater or mari...

Apparent digestibility and gastrointestinal evacuation rate were measured to assess the potential of five commercially available protein sources for their inclusion in feeds for juvenile slipper lobster, Thenus australiensis. Protein sources tested were fishmeal, krill meal, lupin meal, soybean meal and squid by-product meal. Apparent digestibility...

Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha), also referred to as King salmon, is a premium aquaculture species farmed in New Zealand and to a small extent in western Canada. Despite the high research investment in the 50s and 60s, literature on nutrition on chinook salmon from recent years is sparse, particularly when compared to other salmonid aquac...

Feed efficiency, the relative ability to convert feed nutrients into growth, is an important factor in the primary production of animals. Farming fish with improved feed efficiency is necessary to reduce production costs and achieve sustainability for the aquaculture industry. Proteomics provides an approach to discover biochemical mechanisms drivi...

This is the first study in an aquatic ectotherm to combine a stoichiometric bioenergetic approach with an endpoint stochastic model to explore dietary macronutrient content. The combination of measuring respiratory gas (O 2 and CO 2 ) exchange, nitrogenous (ammonia and urea) excretion, specific dynamic action (SDA), metabolic energy substrate use,...

Phospholipids, especially phosphatidylcholine (PC), are considered essential nutrients for larval and juvenile stages of many decapod crustacean species due to low rates of endogenous biosynthesis and potential nutritional benefits in assisting lipid digestion and transport. This study was conducted to test the hypothesis that dietary PC is essenti...

Feed ration plays a crucial role in influencing fish growth performance and maintaining optimal gut health over the seasonal temperature range. However, we have limited knowledge of how these factors affect the gut microbiota of Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) farmed in freshwater recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS). Here we examined...

Humans have relied on coastal resources for centuries. However, current growth in population and increased accessibility of coastal resources through technology have resulted in overcrowded and often conflicted spaces. The recent global move towards development of national blue economy strategies further highlights the increased focus on coastal re...

Humans have relied on coastal resources for centuries. However, current growth in population and increased accessibility of coastal resources through technology have resulted in overcrowded and often conflicted spaces. The recent global move towards development of national blue economy strategies further highlights the increased focus on coastal re...

The respiratory quotient (RQ) has been used extensively as an index to evaluate metabolic energy expenditure in terrestrial animals including humans. In contrast , RQ use in understanding physiology and nutrition of aquatic ectotherms has been restricted due to technical challenges in measuring total CO2 in water. With technical advances in measuri...

In an ocean warming hotspot off south-east Australia, many species have expanded their ranges polewards, including the eastern rock lobster, Sagmariasus verreauxi. This species is likely extending its range via larval advection into Tasmanian coastal waters, which are occupied by the more commercially important southern rock lobster, Jasus edwardsi...

Following recent advances in hatchery technology and large-scale larval rearing of spiny and slipper lobsters, a greater understanding of key nutritional requirements is now imperative to facilitate feed development for juvenile culture. However, there is a lack of relevant information available for the slipper lobsters, particularly Thenus species...

Simultaneous measurements of nitrogenous (ammonia and urea) excretion and respiratory gas (O 2 and CO 2) exchange provide a non-destructive stoichiometric bioenergetic approach to elucidate metabolic energy sub-strate use which has rarely been used with aquatic ectotherms due to previous difficulties in measuring total CO 2 excretion. This study ex...

The moult cycle is arguably the most critical aspect of crustacean biology and is associated with dramatic changes in behaviour, physiology and condition. Here we describe the first detailed investigation of the combined changes in morphology, physiological status and nutritional condition over the moult cycle of juvenile T. australiensis. Haemolym...

Detailed classification and characterisation of the gut microbial community and understanding of factors affecting the microbiota are essential to understand the relationship between Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) gut microbiota and fish health. Here we evaluated the multiple effects of biotic and abiotic factors on the gut microbial com...

Farmed Atlantic salmon in Tasmania are exposed to elevated water temperatures during summer, which is often associated with reduced pigmentation quality. This study tested the effects of the factors: temperature (elevated, 19.4 °C (ET) vs. control, 15.2 °C), dietary fatty acid (FA) composition (diet 1, high in fish oil vs. diet 2, low in fish oil)...

Metabolism in aquatic ectotherms evaluated by oxygen consumption rates reflects energetic costs including those associated with protein synthesis. Metabolism is influenced by nutritional status governed by feeding, nutrient intake and quality, and time without food. However, little is understood about contribution of protein synthesis to crustacean...

Pigment-depletion in the fillets of farmed Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) arises after periods of elevated water temperatures with voluntary starving. This study tested the effects of dietary pre-loading with different pigment carotenoids (astaxanthin and/or canthaxanthin) combined with two α-tocopherol levels (normal and high: 500 and 1000 mg/kg, r...

Research with a variety of aquatic ectotherms suggests that variation in individual metabolic rate (i.e., metabolic phenotype) can be a factor that influences the behaviour and growth of individuals. Slow growth, growth disparity and growth depensation have been reported as major drawbacks to spiny lobster production which is thought to be associat...

As salmon aquaculture continues to grow, understanding aquafeed conversion is imperative for making informed strategic growth planning and management decisions. Accurately measuring the apparent digestibility (AD)of commercial aquafeeds on farms requires greater understanding and method development, including the validation of one or more inert end...

Behaviour underpins many facets of the performance of animals in aquaculture. By manipulating culture systems to segregate or allow particular aspects of conspecific interaction, we found physical interactions between P. ornatus individuals to be essential for better culture performance. Three culture types were used to control conspecific interact...

The discussion and the debate on organic feeds for organic aquaculture is still open due to the balance that needs to be achieved between the fundamental rules in organic culture and the reality of the supply of the feed sources for aquafeeds. This chapter covers aspects of current use of formulated feeds, feed composition, aquafeed technology, sus...

One of the main challenges for spiny lobster aquaculture is the successful development of formulated feeds that are attractive, readily consumed by lobsters and promote optimal growth and survival. In a 54-day growth trial, we investigated the performance of four moist formulated feeds containing A) non-homogenised flesh ingredients; B) fish meal o...

Marine tropical carnivorous (MTC) fish are less tolerant to high dietary lipid compared with cold and temperate climate fish. However, insufficient n-3 long-chain (≥C 20) polyunsaturated fatty acids (LC-PUFA) compromises MTC fish health and growth which requires attention when choosing lipid sources in aqua-feed formulations. Fish oil (FO) has been...

Respiratory metabolism of juvenile spiny lobster (Sagmariasus verreauxi) under different feeding conditions

Background: Atlantic salmon production in Tasmania (Southern Australia) occurs near the upper limits of the species thermal tolerance. Summer water temperatures can average over 19 °C over several weeks and have negative effects on performance and health. Liver tissue exerts important metabolic functions in thermal adaptation. With the aim of iden...

Understanding how aquatic species respond to extremes of DO and temperature is crucial for determining how they will be affected by climate change, which is predicted to increasingly expose them to levels beyond their optima. In this study we used novel animal-borne DO, temperature and depth sensors to determine the effect of extremes of DO and tem...

In farmed salmonids the majority of consumed nitrogen is lost in metabolic waste products (mainly ammonia) and the faeces (Table 1). Any improvement in nitrogen retention, brought about by reductions in these components, would decrease environmental load. Inter-individual variation in retained nitrogen has been little investigated as a basis for se...

The spiny lobster Sagmariasus verreauxi is an emerging lobster species for intensive aquaculture. The lack of any nutritional information required for feed development in this species initiated this study to understand the effect of different dietary lipid sources on tissue lipid profiles and expression of selected lipid metabolising genes. Krill o...

We examined the effects of temperature on the growth, feeding, nutritional condition and aerobic metabolism of juvenile spiny lobster, Sagmariasus verreauxi, in order to determine if temperature acclimated aerobic scope correlates with optimum for growth and to establish the thermal tolerance window for this emerging aquaculture species. Juvenile l...

There is currently renewed interest in farming triploid Atlantic salmon. Improving farming requires identifying triploid specific phenotypic and physiological traits that are uniquely derived from ploidy per se and developed under optimal growing conditions. This study investigated firstly, the impact of ploidy on growth performance and whole body...

Lower jaw deformity (LJD) is a skeletal anomaly affecting farmed triploid Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar L.) which leads to considerable economic losses for industry and has animal welfare implications. The present study employed transcriptome analysis in parallel with real-time qPCR techniques to characterise for the first time the LJD condition in...

Sequences of selected transcripts. Sequences of fbn2, gal ad gphb5 which were selected transcripts found differentially expressed after transcriptome analysis and of fgf23, a previously known transcript to be related to bone and cartilage physiology, whose sequence was retrieved during transcriptome analysis. (PDF)

Marine oils are important to human nutrition as the major source of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), a key omega-3 long-chain (≥C20) polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 LC-PUFA) that is low or lacking in terrestrial plant or animal oils. The inclusion of fish oil as main source of n-3 LC-PUFA in aquafeeds is mostly limited by the increasing price and decrea...

MaxQuant output files of the complete peptide and protein-level mass spectrometry. (XLSX)

Principal component analysis (PCA) of the liver proteome profiles. Data points are marked with sample identifiers and replicate number. (TIF)

List of proteins identified and proteins showing significant (adjusted p-value 0.1–0.3) fold changes. (XLSX)

Apparent digestibility (AD; %) of fatty acids in Atlantic salmon smolt fed FO, FOPO and TOFX diets over a 89 day period. (DOCX)

Rapid non-invasive monitoring of spiny lobster nutritional condition has considerable application in the established fishery, live market and prospective aquaculture. The aim of this research was to test the feasibility of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) as a novel non-invasive tool to assess the nutritional condition of three lobster species. Lo...

Dataset containing all biological and FT-NIR data underlying our findings. (XLSX)

Understanding diet- and environmentally-induced physiological changes in fish larvae is a major goal for the aquaculture industry. Proteomic analysis of whole fish larvae comprising multiple tissues offers considerable potential, however, is challenging due to the very large dynamic range of protein abundance. To extend the coverage of the larval p...

Triploid Atlantic salmon populations are associated with higher prevalence of lower jaw skeletal anomalies affecting fish performance, welfare and value deleteriously. Anomalous lower jaw can be curved downward (LJD), shortened (SJ) or misaligned (MA). Two separate groups of triploid Atlantic salmon (~12 g) with either normal lower jaw (NOR) or SJ...

Triploid Atlantic salmon tend to develop a higher prevalence of skeletal anomalies. This tendency may be exacerbated by an inadequate rearing temperature. Early juvenile all-female diploid and triploid Atlantic salmon were screened for skeletal anomalies in consecutive experiments to include two size ranges: the first tested the effect of ploidy (0...

Feeds and feeding are crucial to hatchery success. In freshwater, commercial manufactured feeds are successfully fed at first-feeding to many important aquaculture species. These fish typically have large larvae with well-developed digestive tracts and include carp, salmonids and catfish. Almost all marine larvae require a period of feeding on live...

The growing human population must be fed, but historic land-based systems struggle to meet expanding demand. Marine production supports some of the world's poorest people but increasingly provides for the needs of the affluent, either directly by fishing or via fodder-based feeds for marine and terrestrial farming. Here we show the expanding footpr...

The nutritional condition of cultured Sagmariasus verreauxi juveniles over the molt and during starvation was investigated by studying their metabolism, bioenergetics of nutrient reserves, and hemolymph biochemistry. Juveniles were shown to downregulate standard metabolic rate by as much as 52% within 14 d during starvation. Hepatopancreas (HP) lip...

The digestible protein (DP) and digestible energy (DE) requirements for maintenance and growth of brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) were determined using a factorial model at either optimum (15 °C) or elevated temperature (19 °C). Several key parameters of the factorial model were measured using a series of inter-related studies. The maintenance...

The Southern rock lobster, Jasus edwardsii, is a temperate species of spiny lobster with established well managed fisheries in Australia and New Zealand. It has also been under consideration as a species with aquaculture potential. Agonistic behaviour has important consequences under aquaculture conditions that encompass direct effects, such as dam...

Feeding fish a fish oil finishing diet (FOFD) after grow-out on vegetable oil diet is one strategy to restore eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) levels. We investigated restoration of EPA and DHA in rainbow trout fed a FOFD preceded by a grow-out period on 50% or 75% palm fatty acid distillate (PFAD) diets at optimal (15°C)...

This review aimed to place crustacean research on in vivo protein synthesis into a broader context, assess its potential for providing further insights into crustacean nutrition and physiology, and recommend future directions relevant to crustacean aquaculture. In crustaceans the flooding dose measurement of protein synthesis is the only method tha...

The ability of lobsters to recover from stress is an important factor influencing growth and survival in aquaculture; however, there is limited information on the metabolic responses of spiny lobsters to stress. This study determined oxygen consumption rate ((M) over dot O-2) and ammonia-N excretion of juvenile spiny lobsters Sagmariasus verreauxi...

Stocking density is a critical factor affecting performance of aquatic organisms in culture, however, its influence on energy utilisation has rarely been considered. Energy partitioning is particularly important for spiny lobster phyllosoma, which must accumulate sufficient energy reserves for metamorphosis and the non-feeding puerulus stage. The c...