Genetic Resources of Neotropical Fishes

269 Pages·2017·6.9 MB·English

by  Alexandre W. S. Hilsdorf, Eric M. Hallerman (auth.)

Alexandre W.S. Hilsdorf
Eric M. Hallerman
Genetic Resources
of Neotropical
Fishes
Genetic Resources of Neotropical Fishes
Alexandre W.S. Hilsdorf • Eric M. Hallerman
Genetic Resources
of Neotropical Fishes
Alexandre W.S. Hilsdorf Eric M. Hallerman
Unit of Biotechnology Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation
University of Mogi das Cruzes Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State
Mogi das Cruzes, SP, Brazil University
Blacksburg, VA, USA
ISBN 978-3-319-55836-3 ISBN 978-3-319-55838-7 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-55838-7
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017934886
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Foreword
Fish from the world’s lakes, rivers, reservoirs, swamps, and wetlands provide vital
components of food security, economic opportunity, cultural identity, spirituality,
and recreation to an ever-growing human population. However, these important
inland fishery resources are being threatened as never before. Increased competition
from other sectors using freshwater, e.g., irrigation, hydroelectric generation, and
industry, has reduced the quantity and quality of water available for fish; unsustainable
land-use practices have degraded aquatic habitats and made them unsuitable for many
species of aquatic organisms. With the needs for irrigated agriculture and energy
expected to double in the coming decades, competition for freshwater can only be
expected to become more severe.
Inland fish are currently thought to be the most threatened group of vertebrates
used by humans. It is disturbing that the needs of the people most dependent on
inland fishery resources, i.e., the millions of small-scale, often seasonal fishers
throughout the world, are often overlooked by policy makers that give more attention
to the interests of agriculture, energy, and development. The staples of agriculture –
maize, wheat, and rice – provide very important energy and fiber, but fish provide
an array of protein, essential fatty acids, minerals, and trace elements that those
staples do not possess.
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and others
have stated that a major challenge in maintaining inland aquatic ecosystems, their fish-
ery resources, their biodiversity, and the people that depend on them is governance – a
governance system that includes all sectors using freshwater ecosystems. According to
the Assistant Director-General of the Fisheries and Aquaculture Department of FAO
(Taylor et al. 2016), “… international and national efforts to fully integrate inland
fisheries into the broader governance and development agenda have not been overly
successful. Important publications and processes have given much more attention to
domestic uses of water, to marine and coastal issues, or to agriculture production over
inland fishery production.”
However, the first step in good governance is good information. Sadly, the state
of our information on the fishery resources of many inland aquatic ecosystems is
very poor.
v
vi Foreword
According to the FAO database on global fishery production, more than half of
the production from the world’s inland fisheries is not reported to species. Most
experts agree that the production that is reported is underestimated. The nonmone-
tary value of inland aquatic ecosystems, especially to indigenous people, has only
recently been recognized through the efforts of inter alia FAO and the Convention
on Biological Diversity. We do not know what or how much inland aquatic ecosys-
tems are contributing to our food security and economies, and we do not appreciate
the cultural and spiritual contributions they make to the daily lives of many rural
people throughout the world.
It is against this background that this publication is a timely and important
contribution to the information on the biodiversity of inland fishery resources.
The Neotropical region contains some of the most diverse aquatic habitats and
fishery resources in the world. Especially important is the treatment of genetic
diversity below the species level, i.e., infra-specific diversity. Genetic diversity
within species is useful in fishery management, in identifying cryptic species, in
aquaculture breeding programs, in identifying escapes from aquaculture, and in
traceability requirements in the marketing of fish and fish products. Again, this
valuable information is often lacking for many species, and this publication helps
fill an important gap.
Once an in-depth examination of a region begins, it very soon becomes apparent
how complex managing inland aquatic ecosystems can be in the Neotropics and
elsewhere: the needs of agriculture and energy sectors must be balanced against the
needs of fishery-dependent communities; aquaculture will certainly be necessary to
provide fish as capture fisheries reach their biological limits of production, but
aquaculture requires expertise and resources that many rural areas do not possess;
the use of nonnative species can improve production and profitability in many pro-
duction systems, but they can also cause great harm to natural biodiversity; genetic
information is extremely valuable in managing fisheries and aquaculture, but it can
be difficult and expensive to obtain and monitor. In efforts to balance these complex
elements, FAO et al. have promoted an “ecosystem approach” to resource manage-
ment. This publication with its extensive references and comprehensive coverage of
a multitude of issues related to inland fishes of the Neotropical region will enable
the reader to pursue a host of topics relating to the sustainable use and conservation
of Neotropical fishes, the aquatic ecosystems that support them, and the people that
depend on them for their livelihood and enjoyment.
Publishing information on the biodiversity of Neotropical fishes is the first step:
where it exists, where it is threatened, where it is unique, where it is unknown,
where it needs to be conserved, and perhaps even where it can be changed. The FAO
and national governments are currently compiling such information in the first State
of the World’s Aquatic Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, which will
complement ongoing work on fisheries and aquaculture. Both of the authors of this
book have contributed significantly to FAO’s efforts to increase information on
aquatic genetic resources. This book will significantly add to the growing body of
knowledge on inland aquatic biodiversity of the Neotropics; the information,
Foreword vii
concepts, and approaches can and should be applied to other regions of the world to
help conserve and sustainably use these resources today and in the future.
Rome, Italy Devin M. Bartley, PhD.
Reference
Taylor, W.W., Bartley, D.M., Goddard, C.I., Leonard, N.J., Welcomme, R. (2016). Freshwater, fish
and the future: Proceedings of the global cross-sectoral conference. Rome/East Lansing/Bethesda:
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations/Michigan State University/American
Fisheries Society. http://www.fao.org/3/a-i5711e.pdf.
Acknowledgments
Alexandre Wagner Silva Hilsdorf
My acknowledgments go to those who most make my professional and personal life
choices possible. My mother, Helena S. Hilsdorf who said once “Go ahead make
your dreams come true,” and my father, Orlando Hilsdorf despite passing away
early, was always an inspiration of hard work and perseverance. My wife Monica
Parisi and my daughter Bruna, who are always a source of love, encouragement, and
tolerance. My mentors for encouraging, guiding, and supporting both my research
ideas and personally: Dra. Lisete Chamma Davide (Federal University of Lavras,
Brazil), Dr. Brendan McAndrew and Dr. David Penman (University of Stirling,
Scotland), Dr. José Eduardo Krieger and Dra. Marta Helena Krieger (University of
São Paulo and University of Campinas, Brazil), and Dr. José Bento Sterman Ferraz
(University of São Paulo), who encouraged me to earn the Venia Docendi (Livre
Docência) degree in Animal Genetic Resources at the University of São Paulo –
Brazil, which was the primary source for this book. Last but not least, all students
of the Laboratory of Aquatic Organism Genetics and Aquaculture at the University
of Mogi das Cruzes – Brazil, who are directly responsible for turning into reality our
ideas and scientific hypothesis. A special word of thanks also goes to my dear friend
Eric, who accepted with me the challenge to put into words our ideas on fish genet-
ics gathered over the years.
Eric M. Hallerman
I am grateful for the support of those that brought me to this place in life and career
and who sustain me. My parents, George and Maxine Hallerman, provided the
encouragement and support that enabled my journey professional and personal.
My wife, Ester, and children, Tamar and Simon, give me strength and inspiration.
Sir Isaac Newton said in 1676, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the
shoulders of giants.” The same applies to me; I recognize the mentors upon whose
shoulders I stand: Bill Childers and Dave Philipp (Illinois Natural History Survey),
ix
x Acknowledgments
R.O. Smitherman (Auburn University), and Moshe Soller (Hebrew University of
Jerusalem). I thank my friend and colleague, Alexandre, for challenging me to share
the creation of this book. Support for my participation in this work was provided in
part by the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station and the Hatch Program of the
National Institute of Food and Agriculture, US Department of Agriculture.
Contents
1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2 Genetic Resources: What Are Genetic Resources
and Their Importance for Food Production? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.1 About Biological Diversity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
2.2 What Are Biological Resources, Genetic Resources,
and Genetic Heritage? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
2.3 Genetic Resources and Food Production . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
2.4 Animal Genetic Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.5 Genetic Resources of Freshwater Fishes in the world . . . . . . . . . . . 20
2.6 Genetic Resources for Aquaculture Species . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
2.7 B iogeography of Fishes Globally . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
2.8 Biogeography of Fishes in the Neotropical Region . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
2.9 Fish Genetic Resources in the Neotropical Countries . . . . . . . . . . . 30
2.10 Threats to FiGR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.10.1 Damming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36
2.10.2 Fish Introductions and Hybridizations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39
References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44
3 Characterization of Genetic Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
3.1 The Genetic Structure of Populations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55
3.2 Population and Stock Concepts for FiGR Management . . . . . . . . . 61
3.3 Genetic Variation and Its Importance for FiGR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62
3.4 Genetic Markers Used in the Characterization
of Fish Populations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
3.5 Evolution in Use of Population-Based Genetic Markers
Studies of Neotropical Fishes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
3.5.1 Allozyme Markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69
3.5.2 Mitochondrial DNA-Based Markers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71
xi