Seafood products are an essential food source for many countries: fish accounts for 17% of the consumption of animal protein worldwide. However, many fish populations are overexploited and disrupted by global changes. Fish and shellfish farms also have an impact on the environment. The challenge is to reconcile the exploitation of living resources and the preservation of species. Ifremer thus monitors the state of fish populations and seeks to understand how these populations are renewed and to make aquaculture practices more sustainable.
Fishing: a global and detailed monitoring of fish
To know the dynamics of fish, crustacean and shellfish populations caught, Ifremer organizes scientific campaigns every year on board oceanographic ships. Through animal captures, these campaigns provide a lot of information on the populations fished (indices of abundance, geographical distribution…) and on the ecosystems of which they are part. Individuals caught are identified, measured and may be subject to biological, physiological or genetic studies on board ships.
Centralize data to study fish populations and related human activities
The data collected on fished species are used to understand population dynamics and changes related to human activities. They are supplemented by data on the socio-ecosystem of fisheries (selling prices of fish, economic and social data of companies…). All this data is centralized within the Ifremer Fisheries Information System (SIH).
Ifremer develops mathematical models to study the impact on fish populations of climate change, marine renewable energies, fisheries… These simulations facilitate the evaluation of the effects of fisheries management scenarios and climate change, both on fish and on the sector. State services can use this data to put in place management measures.
Know and reduce the effects of fishing
Ifremer is studying the impacts of fishing on ecosystems, including the consequences of the passage of fishing gear, with a view to preserving biodiversity and sustainably exploiting resources. Ifremer is involved in particular in reducing accidental dolphin catches in the Bay of Biscay, in collaboration with fishermen.
Ifremer has also been working for several decades to improve fishing gear, through models and modeling, in particular thanks to the Lorient test pool. More recently, the institute has been developing « intelligent trawls »: from the artificial intelligence recognition of fish when they enter the nets, unwanted species are released live, via automated traps. The European Marine Beacon project extends this approach at the European level.
Seassel farming: towards more sustainable farms and resilient animals
Ifremer’s research helps with the development of shellfish sectors, mainly those of hollow oyster and mussel, as well as flat oyster, clam, shell…
Monitor and understand shellfish mortality
Some shellfish, and in particular hollow oysters, are experiencing episodes of mass mortality or severe growth and development disruptions, more frequent since the 1990s. The causes are mainly related to pathogens (viruses, bacteria, etc.), in connection with environmental conditions (rise in water temperature, pollution, etc.) and livestock practices. Ifremer is studying the mechanisms of action of these pathogens, in particular, in the hollow oyster, the bacterium Vibrio aestuanus and the herpes virus OsHV-1, a variant of which is particularly fatal for the newborn, was newly detected in 2008.
The institute’s scientists model the risks and seek solutions through genetic selection, epigenetics, immunology and breeding techniques, taking into account the increase in ocean temperature that can promote mortality. Thus, Ifremer has developed a technique that stimulates the defenses of hollow oysters in the laboratory against infection by the OsHV-1 virus. Ifremer has also identified beneficial strains of bacteria, which can be used as probiotics to strengthen the oyster microbiota.
Ifremer also has a mandate as a reference laboratory (national and European) and the development of techniques on the surveillance of diseases of molluscs.
Support the development of aquaculture sectors
Reduce the impact of aquaculture activities on the environment
Since the 1990s, the demand for fish has continued to grow. However, fishing cannot keep up with this pace due to already too much pressure on fishery resources. Faced with this situation, aquaculture has developed widely on a global scale. France represents only 1% of the world’s production of seawater fish, but the country has expertise on some alives, for example 25% of the world’s sea bass production comes from French selection programs.
Ifremer is studying the environmental effects of the presence of an aquaculture facility and is working to make livestock more sustainable. For example, Bouin’s Ifremer platform is testing different processes to improve water treatment, to disinfect and decontaminate seawater that feeds livestock in closed structures.
The institute also responds to requests from professionals, to verify empirical findings, understand their causes and help the sector develop more virtuous practices. For example, professionals in the Thau lagoon have found that temporarily emerging hollow oysters improves their survival and growth.
Genetics and genomics, for more resilient animals and better adapted to future breeding conditions
Ifremer analyzes the genetic characteristics of farmed animals: these can be used for the development, by professionals, of genetic selection programs. These programs will make it possible, through successive natural crossings, to benefit from the characteristics of interest in farm animals, while ensuring that the genetic diversity is preserved that allows animals to better withstand other changes. Ifremer studies several model species, such as sea bass, sea bream, oyster and mussel.
In the hollow oyster, Ifremer has shown the existence of genetic bases linked to better resistance to infection by OsHV-1 or Vibrio aestuarianus. Epigenetic selection is also explored: Ifremer is a pioneer in the study of epigenetic mechanisms in marine invertebrates such as oysters and coral.
At the bar, Ifremer has developed a genomic chip. The institute was thus able to identify and make available to the sector genetic markers to select bars more resistant to nodavirosis, a deadly viral disease. The institute is also working to improve the food efficiency of fish, in order to reduce the carbon footprint of farms, or to improve tolerance to heat and lack of oxygen.For more informationA genetic trail against nodaviruswww.ifremer.frThe Palavas marine experimental platformwww.ifremer.fr
Ifremer supports the development of aquaculture sectors in the overseas regions
In New Caledonia since the 1970s, Ifremer has accompanied the establishment of a shrimp sector with its research actions. The institute has thus acquired a lot of scientific knowledge on shrimp and their breeding, in particular on the bacteria responsible for mortality episodes in the 1990s. The institute has evaluated solutions to sustain this economic activity, for example probiotics from Caledonian strains. More recently, Ifremer has implemented integrated projects on the microbial environment of larval farms, nutrition from short-circuit sources (microalgae, insects) or the impact of temperature increases on aquaculture ecosystems related to climate change, etc. Today the Caledonian sector has been structured and Ifremer maintains a position of research, innovation and scientific expertise to give local decision-makers and industrialists the keys to sustainable shrimp farming and promote the emergence of new aquaculture sectors.
In French Polynesia, Ifremer studies aged oysters for « black pearls », the country’s 2nd economic activity. The research concerns the life cycle of these oysters, their reproduction, their genetics and the mechanisms of biomineralization of pearls. They have made it possible to strengthen the quality of these « black pearls » and to make this sector, which is heavily used plastics (ropes, buoy lines, shades, etc.), more sustainable. The institute also seeks to anticipate the effects of climate change that could damage the sector.
More recently, Ifremer provides support for the diversification of farm species (fish, rock oysters, cans, sea urchins…), in order to improve the resilience of the sector, especially in the face of climate change.
source : ifremer.fr
