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Introduction Sharks and rays are an important attraction for public aquariums where they provide an interesting and invaluable educational tool. Elasmobranchs are also maintained in public aquariums and marine laboratories for the purposes of scientific investigation. Much of what we know about these inscrutable animals has been learned through observing them in aquaria. Elasmobranchs exhibit a K-selected life history strategy, characterized by low fecundity, slow growth rates, and late sexual maturity. Unfortunately, this life history strategy makes sharks and rays susceptible to overexploitation. Reproduction of elasmobranchs in aquariums is poorly understood and is frequently restricted by the physical limitations of facilities. In addition, unless appropriate husbandry practices are adopted, elasmobranch survivorship in aquariums can be lower than in their natural habitat. As a basic conservation measure, the elasmobranch caretaker community needs to increase its level of peer review, constantly exchange information, and continually update prevailing husbandry practices. In addition, it should provide assistance to new and developing facilities, where less than ideal husbandry protocols may be adopted through lack of training or readily available information. Until the present day there has been no handbook enumerating the captive care of sharks and rays. Information has been available in scientific journals, the gray literature, and predominantly within the memories of experienced aquarium veterans, but it has been typically scattered and difficult to access. It seems incredible that the husbandry of such an important and charismatic group of animals has not been more comprehensively addressed in the literature. The Elasmobranch Husbandry Manual: Captive Care of Sharks, Rays and their Relatives attempts a first step toward addressing this oversight. The development of the Manual was slightly unorthodox and merits some description. It began as a bullet list of husbandry topics, tabled and discussed at the 1999 Regional Aquatic Workshop in Minneapolis, Minnesota (USA). This list was then fine-tuned over ensuing months by a steering committee established at the same meeting. The initial premise was to generate an exhaustive list of elasmobranch husbandry topics and then solicit contributions to match those topics from individuals considered to be leaders in their respective fields. As the Manual was conceived to be a conservation initiative, participation was to be, and indeed remained, entirely voluntary. As a catalyst to the development of the Manual the 1st International Elasmobranch Husbandry Symposium was held in Orlando, Florida (USA), between the 3rd and 7th of October in 2001. The first three days of the Symposium included invited papers, representing the formal chapters of the Manual, and an additional day was made available for the presentation of voluntary contributions and the discussion of a plan of action. Bringing together ~180 learned individuals from 16 countries, the Symposium provided an opportunity to exchange information about the husbandry of elasmobranchs and to conduct an informal peer review of the contributions made by invited speakers. Following the Symposium, invited contributions were then peer-reviewed in a more formal manner and the result is the Manual you are now reading. The ultimate objective of the Manual was to produce a single-reference handbook that could be used as a guide to the captive care of elasmobranchs, assisting in the development of new exhibits, aiding the training of husbandry personnel, and answering specific husbandry questions about this important taxonomic group. In addition, it was a project objective to make the Manual available free-of-charge, via the World Wide Web, allowing anyone who might work with elasmobranchs ready access to the information. The resulting website is to be used as a forum to distribute the Manual, to post Manual updates, and to provide additional information and husbandry tools useful to elasmobranch caretakers. A number of articles presented at the 1st International Elasmobranch Husbandry Symposium were deemed to be of lesser immediate relevance and were not included in the Manual. These articles, in combination with archive articles from previous issues of Drum and Croaker, have been compiled by Peter J. Mohan (editor of Drum and Croaker) and published as The Shark Supplement: 40 Years of Elasmobranch Husbandry Science, Speculation, and Apocrypha (Drum and Croaker Special Edition No. 2). This supplement may be accessed through either the Manual or the Drum and Croaker websites. Aquariology is an emerging science and many experienced aquarium professionals have little formal scientific training, yet many of these individuals have years of valuable hands-on experience. Conversely, many workers who actively cooperate with public aquariums are professional academics and respected leaders in their respective fields. The Manual brings together contributions from both ends of this spectrum. This process has given the Manual an inclusive and, at times, a slightly eclectic feel. Rather than detract from the merit of individual contributions, or indeed the broad coverage of the manual, we believe that this unique characteristic enhances the accessibility and ultimately the applicability of the Manual. It was always considered that the Manual would serve, in part, as a bridge between pure science and applied aquariology, and we trust that this goal has been achieved. The editors, Mark Smith Dennis Thoney Doug Warmolts Robert Hueter ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Numerous individuals and organizations greatly assisted with the development of the Manual and indeed the project could never have been completed without the generous contribution of their time and resources. We would like to thank the following individuals: Project steering committee George Benz, Ilze Berzins, Greg Charbeneau, Joe Choromanski, Jerry Crow, Jane Davis, Ray Davis, Beth Firchau, Pat Garratt, Suzanne Gendron, Alan Henningsen, John Hewitt, Robert Hueter, Max Janse, Allan Marshall, Tony McEwan, Pete Mohan, Dave Powell, Juan Romero, Juan Sabalones, Mike Shaw, Mark Smith, Frank Steslow, Dennis Thoney, Gary Violetta, Doug Warmolts, and Marty Wisner. Project Sponsors A very special thanks to the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, without whom the Manual could not have been possible, and additional thanks to these other project sponsors: Chester Zoo, Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, Florida Aquarium, International Design for the Environment and Associates, The Living Seas, Monterey Bay Aquarium, Mote Marine Laboratory, National Aquarium in Baltimore, National Marine Aquarium, Núcleo de Pesquisa e Estudo em Chondrichthyes, Oceanário de Lisboa, Ripley Aquariums (a division of Ripley Entertainment, Inc.), SeaWorld Orlando, and Shark Reef Mandalay Bay. Symposium organizers and moderators Doug Warmolts, Mark Smith, George Benz, Ilze Berzins, Joe Choromanski, Jerry Crow, Greg Charbeneau, Kevin Curlee, Jane Davis, Ray Davis, Becky Ellsworth, Beth Firchau, Sarah Fowler, Suzanne Gendron, Alan Henningsen, Robert Hueter, Allan Marshall, Pete Mohan, Frank Murru, Mafalda Sousa Pires, Dave Powell, Juan Romero, Juan Sabalones, Dennis Thoney, Tom Schmid, Gary Violetta, Marty Wisner, and Ken Yates. Manual reviewers Brian Armitage, Jackson Andrews, George Benz, Ilze Berzins, Greg Cailliet, Mary Camhi, José Castro, Greg Charbeneau, Joe Choromanski, Geremy Cliff, Jerry Crow, Kevin Curlee, Jane Davis, Ray Davis, Heidi Dewar, Carol Farmer, Beth Firchau, Sonja Fordham, Sarah Fowler, Jim Gelsleichter, Suzanne Gendron, Carrie Goertz, Ken Goldman, Marty Greenwald, Joe Groff, Perry Hampton, Jay Hemdale, Alan Henningsen, Robert Hueter, Robin James, Ray Jones, Carl Luer, Holly Martel Bourbon, Tony McEwan, Steve Menzies, Pete Mohan, Henry Mollet, John Morrissey, Mike Murray, Frank Murru, Jack Musick, John O'Sullivan, Dave Powell, Paula Powell, Sarah Poynton, Alison Davidson nee Scarratt, Peter Scott, Mike Shaw, Mahmood Shivij, Mark Smith, Andy Stamper, Frank Steslow, Scott Terrell, Dennis Thoney, Gary Violetta, Gerard Visser, Mike Walsh, Hans Walters, Brent Whitaker, Rolf Williams, Marty Wisner, Reid Withrow, and Ken Yates. Additional support A special thanks to Mike Shaw for copy editing the Manual and to Pete Mohan for editing the references throughout. Thank you to Brian Armitage and the Ohio Biological Survey, and a special thanks to Gordon McGregor Reid and Heather Koldewey. Thank you to Rolf Williams and Juan Romero who were responsible for illustrations and photographs not supplied by the authors. Additional support for the project was provided by the following individuals: Jackson Andrews, Greg Bell, George Benz, Ilze Berzins, Kevin Bonifas, Carlos Bohorquez, Andrew Camoens, Ellen Carpenter, Jeffrey Carrier, José Castro, Greg Charbeneau, Natasha Christie, Joe Choromanski, Frederick Chua, Eugenie Clark, João Pedro Correia, Jerry Crow, Mike Crumpler, Ray Davis, Andy Dehart, Kevin Feldheim, Beth Firchau, Sarah Fowler, Rod Garner, Suzanne Gendron, Carrie Goertz, Manoel Mateus Bueno Gonzalez, Joe Groff, Randy Hamilton, Gary Hannon, Bobbie Headley, Kendall Heard, Silvio Heidler, Alan Henningsen, John Hewitt, Diane Hockman, Jack Jewell, Ray Jones, Kay Kunze, David Lai, Claude Le Milinaire, Jeff Mahon, Alan Marshall, Tom Mattix, Cindy Melchiorre, Steve Miller, Pete Mohan, Frank Murru, Julie Packard, João Falcato Pereira, Nuno Pereira, Glen Pittenger, Dave Powell, Susanne Riddle, Robert Rinker, Juan Romero, John Rupp, Paul Russell, Juan Sabalones, Tom Schmid, Lee Simmons, Jennifer Sowash, Mark Stetter, Scott Terrel, Gary Violetta, Matt Walker, Mike Walsh, Nancy Walters, Rolf Williams, Ken Yates, and Forrest Young. DISCLAIMER The Elasmobranch Husbandry Manual: Captive Care of
Sharks, Rays and their Relatives is intended to present the current
scientific and experiential understanding of the captive care of
elasmobranchs in aquarium or research laboratory settings. Some contributions
lend themselves to scientific rigor, where material presented is
supported by peer-reviewed literature. Other contributions are based,
out of necessity, on the collective experience of professional aquarists,
because relevant scientific literature is scant or non-existent.
The contributors and editors cannot be, and are not, legally, financially
or in any other way, responsible for the application of techniques
described within the Manual. When undertaking any procedures or techniques
outlined in the Manual, it is up to individual workers to assess
the unique circumstances of their situation, apply common sense,
and subsequently apply any procedures or techniques at their own
risk. In all cases, the reader of this Manual is cautioned not to
use this handbook as an exact step-by-step guide, but rather as a
starting reference point for further case-specific research. |
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Communication For more information about the elasmobranch husbandry manual project please feel free to contact Mark Smith at the following: Mark Smith T: ++61-0-732-542-096 |
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List Server
A list server dedicated to the discussion of issues related to the manual and other discussion of other elasmobranch husbandry concerns is available for interested parties. If you would like to subscribe to this list server please contact Doug Warmolts at the following: Doug Warmolts Telephone: +1-614-645-3400 |
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