Reference number : GC-2017-Q4-00622, amendment number : , agreement type : G, recipient legal name : Gagnon, Patrick (Memorial University of Newfoundland), recipient country : CA, recipient province : nan, recipient city : Newfoundland and Labrador|Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador, recipient postal code : nan, program name english : Engage Grants for universities, program name french : Subventions d'engagement partenarial pour les universités, program purpose english : With densities of up to 500 individuals m-2, the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis, is a_x000D_
dominant grazer in shallow rocky subtidal habitats in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (NGSL). A green sea_x000D_
urchin fishery entirely dependent on harvesting individual urchins manually is currently in operation at several_x000D_
sites in the NGSL. However, success is limited mainly because of the small period, i.e. a few weeks in fall and_x000D_
winter, during which urchin gonad or "roe" (the urchin's organ marketed for human consumption) must be_x000D_
collected to minimize variability in quantity and quality. This fishery mainly targets urchin grazing fronts,_x000D_
leaving in the barrens high densities of undernourished urchins that could form the basis of a viable_x000D_
commercial exploitation if these urchins were farmed with the right equipment in land-based facilities._x000D_
Pêcheries Shipek S.E.C. (PSSEC), a leader in commercial harvesting of key marine fish and shellfish species in_x000D_
Québec, needs knowledge on the suitability of a custom-made raceway (system of troughs with continuously_x000D_
running seawater) for quick production of high volumes of green sea urchin roe. In this project, we will_x000D_
examine how urchin stocking density affects urchin aggregation, feeding, and roe yield in the raceway as a first_x000D_
step to determining if the raceway can support steady commercial roe production in green sea urchins fed kelp._x000D_
Weekly trials will be carried out over 12 weeks during which urchins and kelp in multiple sections of the_x000D_
raceway will be filmed at regular intervals and mortality, amount of kelp consumed, and degree of aggregation_x000D_
quantified from the videos. Roe content (somatogonadic index) will be quantified from urchins at the onset and_x000D_
end of the experiment to determine relationship to stocking density and degree of aggregation. Information_x000D_
generated from this new industry collaboration will be used by the company to examine the possibility of_x000D_
diversifying the range of species it provides to fishmongers, while exporting a part of its own production_x000D_
directly to regional and global urchin roe markets., program purpose french : With densities of up to 500 individuals m-2, the green sea urchin, Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis, is a_x000D_
dominant grazer in shallow rocky subtidal habitats in the northern Gulf of St. Lawrence (NGSL). A green sea_x000D_
urchin fishery entirely dependent on harvesting individual urchins manually is currently in operation at several_x000D_
sites in the NGSL. However, success is limited mainly because of the small period, i.e. a few weeks in fall and_x000D_
winter, during which urchin gonad or "roe" (the urchin's organ marketed for human consumption) must be_x000D_
collected to minimize variability in quantity and quality. This fishery mainly targets urchin grazing fronts,_x000D_
leaving in the barrens high densities of undernourished urchins that could form the basis of a viable_x000D_
commercial exploitation if these urchins were farmed with the right equipment in land-based facilities._x000D_
Pêcheries Shipek S.E.C. (PSSEC), a leader in commercial harvesting of key marine fish and shellfish species in_x000D_
Québec, needs knowledge on the suitability of a custom-made raceway (system of troughs with continuously_x000D_
running seawater) for quick production of high volumes of green sea urchin roe. In this project, we will_x000D_
examine how urchin stocking density affects urchin aggregation, feeding, and roe yield in the raceway as a first_x000D_
step to determining if the raceway can support steady commercial roe production in green sea urchins fed kelp._x000D_
Weekly trials will be carried out over 12 weeks during which urchins and kelp in multiple sections of the_x000D_
raceway will be filmed at regular intervals and mortality, amount of kelp consumed, and degree of aggregation_x000D_
quantified from the videos. Roe content (somatogonadic index) will be quantified from urchins at the onset and_x000D_
end of the experiment to determine relationship to stocking density and degree of aggregation. Information_x000D_
generated from this new industry collaboration will be used by the company to examine the possibility of_x000D_
diversifying the range of species it provides to fishmongers, while exporting a part of its own production_x000D_
directly to regional and global urchin roe markets., agreement title english : Effects of stocking density on behaviour and roe yield in kelp-fed green sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) farmed in a custom-made raceway, agreement title french : Effects of stocking density on behaviour and roe yield in kelp-fed green sea urchins (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) farmed in a custom-made raceway, agreement number : EGP, agreement value : 25000.0, agreement start date : 2018-01-10, agreement end date : nan, description english : nan, description french : nan, expected results english : nan, expected results french : nan, additional information english : Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2018-2019)., additional information french : Subvention ou bourse octroyée s'appliquant à plus d'un exercice financier (2017-2018 à 2018-2019)., owner organization : nserc-crsng, owner organization title : Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada | Conseil de recherches en sciences naturelles et en génie du Canada