Reproductive sensitivity to elevated water temperatures in female Atlantic salmon is heightened at certain stages of vitellogenesis

In order to compare the effects on reproductive performance of short-term or prolonged exposure to elevated temperatures during vitellogenesis, female Atlantic salmon Salmo salar were held at a water temperature of 22°C for periods of 4 or 6 weeks during the austral summer and autumn. Plasma levels of 17β-oestradiol (E2), testosterone (T) and vitellogenin (Vtg) were monitored and reproductive success was compared to that in groups of fish maintained at 14 or 22°C for 12 weeks from mid-January. Significant endocrine effects were observed within as few as 3 days of the commencement of exposure to 22°C, when plasma levels of E2 (c. 0.5 ng ml -1) and Vtg (c. 1.4 mg ml-1) were approximately half those observed in fish maintained at 14°C (c. 1.0 ng ml-1 and 2.7 mg ml-1 respectively). The fertility and survival to the eyed stage of ova from fish held at 14°C exceeded 85 and 70% respectively, whereas ova from fish held at 22°C for 6 or 12 weeks exhibited significantly reduced fertility (<70 and <45% respectively) and survival (c. 40 and 13% respectively). In spite of significant endocrine effects at all stages, a 4 week exposure to 22°C only generated significant reductions in egg fertility (<65%) and survival (c. 30%) when it occurred between mid-February and mid-March. Together, these data confirm that high temperature spikes can affect reproductive success as strongly as more prolonged exposures, and indicate that there is a critical period of reproductive sensitivity to elevated temperature in late February and early March in this stock of Atlantic salmon. © 2007 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.