Water temperature influences both morphological and physiological development in fishes. However, the effects of water temperature on the early development of Alligator Gar Atractosteus spatula and Spotted Gar Lepisosteus oculatus are not well understood. Both gar species were collected from natural environments and spawned in a hatchery setting. After spawning, fertilized embryos were collected and transferred to the Oklahoma Fishery Research Laboratory, where the embryos (50–72 embryos/treatment) were placed into one of five water temperature treatments (15.5, 20.0, 23.8, 27.5, and 32.2°C) and observed over time to estimate the time to hatch and the time to reach the free‐swimming stage. Both species showed an inverse relationship between temperature and the timing of hatch and advancement to free‐swimming fingerlings for all treatments. In addition, Alligator Gar embryos did not develop at the coldest water temperature tested, and Alligator Gar juveniles held at the warmest temperature tested were observed with developmental abnormalities, potentially affecting their survival. The same temperature extremes had no comparable negative effect on Spotted Gar. The results of this study are useful for understanding early life history dynamics of these two species in their natural environments and can also be used by hatchery managers who are seeking to optimize their production protocols.

中文翻译：

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温度对实验室环境中扬子鳄和斑Gar孵化率及早期发育的影响

水温影响鱼类的形态和生理发育。然而，水温对短吻鳄spa和斑点Spot小Le的早期发育的影响尚未完全了解。两种都是从自然环境中收集的，并在孵化场中产卵。产卵后，收集受精的胚胎并转移到俄克拉荷马州渔业研究实验室，在那里将胚胎（50-72个胚胎/处理）放入五种水温处理（15.5、20.0、23.8、27.5和32.2°C）之一中然后随着时间的推移进行观察，以估算孵化时间和达到自由游泳阶段的时间。在所有处理中，两个物种均显示出温度与孵化时机以及鱼种向自由游泳状态发展的反比关系。此外，在测试的最冷水温下没有发现扬子鳄Gar胚胎，并且在测试的最暖水温下发现了扬子鳄Gar幼虫发育异常，可能影响他们的生存。相同的极端温度对Spot Gar不会产生可比的负面影响。这项研究的结果对于了解这两个物种在自然环境中的早期生活史动态很有用，也可用于寻求优化其生产流程的孵化场管理者。