Matvælarannsóknir Íslands (Matís) and Hólar University take part in an extensive European project involving research into the welfare of fish in aquaculture.
The goal is to define what causes stress and discomfort in fish. 60 research groups from over 20 countries are participating in the project, which lasts for 5 years. The research project is part of the European Union's COST program, which provides around ISK 10 billion for research. The project manager of the research project is Professor Anders Kiessling at the University of Ás in Norway.
Dr. Þorleifur Ágústsson, project manager at Matís, and Dr. Helgi Thorarensen, at Hólar University, sits on the board of the project. Þorleifur says that new research indicates that fish experience pain like birds and mammals, although it is not clear whether there is a similar feeling of pain as in higher vertebrates. He says that in order to study how fish experience their environment, it is necessary to elicit a biological response with stimuli and study the effects.
"Because fish do not have the ability to indicate pain or discomfort with sounds and / or facial expressions, it has mainly relied on changes in behavior as well as trying to assess stress responses."
Pollutants affect stress
Þorleifur says that stimuli that cause stress are transmitted through nerves that are connected to sight, hearing, the sense of smell and the senses that sense changes in water pressure. Environment or conditions that fish do not tolerate, such as too high a density, too high / low oxygen level, unfavorable salinity, high levels of carbon dioxide (affects blood acidity) also affect the nerve messages that reach the brain and cause stress. Pollutants (natural or man-made) also have a very strong stress effect on fish.
"Stress in fish is therefore an extremely complex phenomenon, but in short, it can be said that a physiological change occurs in stressed fish from being in rapid growth in good health to being a sick fish with a low life expectancy," says Þorleifur.
Þorleifur says that it is clear that in aquaculture there are many problems waiting to be solved that are related to research on fish welfare. "It is very important to strengthen such research, not least in Iceland where cod farming is growing rapidly, because the conditions here by nature are completely different from those known in neighboring countries - Icelandic conditions therefore need Icelandic solutions."
More information can be found on the project's website: www.fishwelfare.com