Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

Stable isotope on hilsa shad (Tenualosa ilisha) otoliths revealed migratory behavior of a population found in Hooghly River, West Bengal, India

  • Published:
Environmental Biology of Fishes Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Anadromous fishes like hilsa shad are found near the delta region of Ganges River which are exotic and carry economic potential. The river offers a tidal environment connecting with marine and freshwater ecosystem providing nutrient-rich seasonal water for their growth and development. The complex migratory pattern of these fishes is a major concern in fisheries research. The present study is based on a large collection of isotopic data from otolith specimens of varying sizes covering population of varying age. Here we examined their stable isotopic signature and relate it with their age and locations in the stream length. Otolith δ18O showed significant relationships with fish sizes (length and weight) and distance from the river mouth and can provide a new tool to distinguish their habitats. Small size individuals show affinity for freshwater, while bigger individuals originates from Bay area. The ANOVA and discriminant function analysis (DFA) is used to check whether the fish inhabiting upstream and downstream can be categorized by their δ18O values and to define the composition of the end member. Further, a numerical model of two component mixing is introduced to prescribe the integrated time interval, equated with their size to define specific habitat. The significant variations in otolith δ18O values are found between upstream and downstream of the Hooghly River, and the DFA showed the overall 81% of individuals were assigned to the upstream or downstream of the Diamond Harbour, while the remaining individuals of 1–2 years age represent mobile population, probably participating in the successful spawning and feeding activities. This method allowed understanding the migration tendency of adult individual (fraction of time spend in the freshwater) and clearly identified the habitat based on isotopic ratios in otolith specimens. This study will serve as template for understanding the aquaculture potential and scientific management policies for hilsa shad in the West Bengal region.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

The data analyzed during the present study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  • Ahmed MBU, Ahammad AK, Shahjahan M, Rabbi M, Ashraful Alam M, Sakib M, ... Mahmud Y (2020) Age, growth and maturity of the Indian Shad, Tenualosa ilisha through otolith examination from different habitats in Bangladesh. Egypt J Aquat Biol Fish 24(6):343–359. https://doi.org/10.21608/ejabf.2020.119368

  • Bala BK, Arshad FM, Alias EF, Sidique SF, Noh KM, Rowshon MK, ... Islam MM (2014) Sustainable exploitation of hilsa fish (Tenualosa ilisha) population in Bangladesh: modeling and policy implications. Ecol Modell 283:19-30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2014.03.013

  • Belem AL, Caricchio C, Albuquerque ALS, Venancio IM, Zucchi M, Santos THR, Alvarez YG (2019) Salinity and stable oxygen isotope relationship in the Southwestern Atlantic: constraints to paleoclimate reconstructions. An Acad Bras Ciênc 91:(3). https://doi.org/10.1590/0001-3765201920180226

  • Blaber SJM, Milton DA, Fry GC, Chenery SR (2003) New insights into the life history of Tenualosa ilisha and fishery implications. In: Limburg KE, Waldman JR (eds) Biodiversity, status, and conservation of the world’s shads. Am Fish Soc Symp 35:223–240

  • Carlson AK, Phelps QE, Graeb BDS (2017) Chemistry to conservation: using otoliths to advance recreational and commercial fisheries management. J Fish Biol 90:505–527. https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.13155

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Carvalho MG, Moreira C, Cardoso JF, Brummer GJA, van Gaever,P, van der Veer HW, ... Correia AT (2017) Movement, connectivity and population structure of the intertidal fish Lipophrys pholis as revealed by otolith oxygen and carbon stable isotopes. Mar Biol Res 13(7):764-773. https://doi.org/10.1080/17451000.2017.1306079

  • Chatterjee M, Ghosh P, Ramdas L, Chakrabarti R (2015) Isotopic and geochemical characterization of invader tilapia fishes from water bodies of West Bengal and Karnataka. India Environ Monit Assess 187(11):1–12. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-015-4929-0

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Coplen TB, Brand WA, Gehre M, Gröning M, Meijer HA, Toman B, Verkouteren RM (2006) New guidelines for δ13C measurements. Anal Chem 78(7):2439–2441. https://doi.org/10.1021/ac052027c

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fraile I, Arrizabalaga H, Santiago J, Goñi N, Arregi I, Madinabeitia S, ... Rooker JR (2016) Otolith chemistry as an indicator of movements of albacore (Thunnus alalunga) in the North Atlantic Ocean. Mar Freshw Res 67(7):1002-1013. https://doi.org/10.1071/MF15097

  • Freyhof J (2014) Tenualosa ilisha. The IUCN red list of threatened species 2014: e. T166442A1132697 https://doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.20141.RLTS.T166442A1132697.en

  • Ganguly S, Ghosh P, Banerjee Y, Nath A, Chatterjee M (2017) Observations on habitats for the growth of Tenualosa ilisha population in the Hooghly River estuary, West Bengal, India revealed from isotopic analysis of ear bone (otolith) carbonate. Oceanogr Fish Open Access J 5(1):11–13. https://doi.org/10.19080/OFOAJ.2017.05.555654

  • Ghosh P, Chakrabarti R, Bhattacharya SK (2013) Short-and long-term temporal variations in salinity and the oxygen, carbon and hydrogen isotopic compositions of the Hooghly Estuary water, India. Chem Geol 335:118–127. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2012.10.051

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hobson KA (1999) Tracing origins and migration of wildlife using stable isotopes: a review. Oecologia 120(3):314–326

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hossain MS, Sharifuzzaman SM, Chowdhury SR, Sarker S (2016) Habitats across the life cycle of Hilsa shad (Tenualosa ilisha) in aquatic ecosystem of Bangladesh. Fish Manag Ecol 23(6):450–462. https://doi.org/10.1111/fme.12185

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kendall C, Coplen TB (2001) Distribution of oxygen-18 and deuterium in river waters across the United States. Hydroll Process 15(7):1363–1393. https://doi.org/10.1002/hyp.217

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kerr LA, Secor DH, Kraus RT (2007) Stable isotope (δ13C and δ18O) and Sr/Ca composition of otoliths as proxies for environmental salinity experienced by an estuarine fish. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 349:245–253. https://doi.org/10.3354/meps07064

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kumar A, Sanyal P, Agrawal S (2019) Spatial distribution of δ18O values of water in the Ganga river basin: insight into the hydrological processes. J Hydrol 571:225–234. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2019.01.044

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Landsman SJ, Nguyen VM, Gutowsky LFG, Gobin J, Cook KV, Binder TR, ... Cooke SJ (2011) Fish movement and migration studies in the Laurentian Great Lakes: research trends and knowledge gaps. J Great Lakes Res 37(2):365-379. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jglr.2011.03.003

  • Milton DA, Chenery SR (2003) Movement patterns of the tropical shad hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha) inferred from transects of 87Sr / 86Sr isotope ratios in their otoliths. Can J Fish Aquat Sci 60(11):1376–1385. https://doi.org/10.1139/F03-133

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mohindra V, Divya BK, Kumar R, Singh RK, Dwivedi AK, Mandal S, ... Jena JK (2019) Genetic population structure of a highly migratory Hilsa Shad, Tenualosa ilisha, in three river systems, inferred from four mitochondrial genes analysis. Environ Biol Fish 102(7):939-954. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-019-00881-8

  • Mondal P, de Alcântara MR, Jonathan MP, Biswas JK, Murugan K, Sarkar SK (2018) Seasonal assessment of trace element contamination in intertidal sediments of the meso-macrotidal Hooghly (Ganges) River Estuary with a note on mercury speciation. Mar Pollut Bull 127:117–130. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2017.11.041

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Morrongiello JR, Thresher RE, Smith DC (2012) Aquatic biochronologies and climate change. Nat Clim Chang 2(12):849–857. https://doi.org/10.1038/NCLIMATE1616

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nazir A, Khan MA (2019) Spatial and temporal variation in otolith chemistry and its relationship with water chemistry: stock discrimination of Sperata aor. Ecol Freshw Fish 28(3):499–511. https://doi.org/10.1111/eff.12471

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nazir A, Khan MA (2021) Using otoliths for fish stock discrimination: status and challenges. Acta Ichthyol Piscat 51(2):199–218. https://doi.org/10.3897/aiep.51.64166

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neves A, Vieira AR, Sequeira V, Paiva RB, Janeiro AI, Gaspar LM, Gordo LS (2019) Otolith shape and isotopic ratio analyses as a tool to study Spondyliosoma cantharus population structure. Mar Environ Res 143:93–100. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marenvres.2018.11.012

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pillay TVR (1957) A morphometric study of the populations of hilsa, Hilsa ilisha of the River Hoogly and of the Chilka Lake. Indian J Fish 4(2):344–386

    Google Scholar 

  • Rangarajan R, Pathak P, Banerjee S, Ghosh P (2021) Floating boat method for carbonate stable isotopic ratio determination in a GasBench II peripheral. Rapid Commun Mass Spectrom e9115. https://doi.org/10.1002/rcm.9115

  • Rao BM, Murthy LN, Mathew S, Asha KK, Sankar TV, Prasad MM (2012) Changes in the nutritional profile of Godavari hilsa shad, Tenualosa ilisha (Hamilton, 1822) during its anadromous migration from Bay of Bengal to the River Godavari. Indian J Fish 59:125–132

    Google Scholar 

  • Redding SG, Cooper LW, Castonguay M, Wiernicki C, Secor DH (2020) Northwest Atlantic mackerel population structure evaluated using otolith δ18O composition. ICES J Mar Sci 77(7–8):2582–2589. https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsaa117

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rubenstein DR, Hobson KA (2004) From birds to butterflies: animal movement patterns and stable isotopes. Trends Ecol Evol 19(5):256–263. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2004.03.017

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sahoo AK, Wahab MA, Phillips M, Rahman A, Padiyar A, Puvanendran V, ... Mohan CV (2018) Breeding and culture status of Hilsa (Tenualosa ilisha, Ham. 1822) in South Asia: a review. Rev Aquacult 10(1):96-110. https://doi.org/10.1111/raq.12149

  • Sajina AM, Suresh VR, Sandhya KM, Mukherjee J, Manna RK, Behera BK, ... Banik SK (2020) Status of hilsa fishery in hooghly-bhagirathi river system and associated coastal waters of northern Bay of Bengal. Proc Natl Acad Sci India Sect B Biol Sci 90(3):647-656. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40011-019-01140-7

  • Talwar PK, Jhingran AG (1991) Inland fishes of India and adjacent countries. Oxford and IBH Publishing Co., New Delhi, India

  • Thompson DR, Bury SJ, Hobson KA, Wassenaar LI, Shannon JP (2005) Stable isotopes in ecological studies. Oecologia 144(4):517–519. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-005-0171-8

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Trivedi RC (2010) Water quality of the Ganga River–an overview. Aquat Ecosyst Health Manag 13(4):347–351. https://doi.org/10.1080/14634988.2010.528740

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Walsh CT, Gillanders BM (2018) Extrinsic factors affecting otolith chemistry–implications for interpreting migration patterns in a diadromous fish. Environ Biol Fish 101(6):905–916. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-018-0746-y

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walther BD, Thorrold SR, Olney JE (2008) Geochemical signatures in otoliths record natal origins of American shad. Trans Am Fish Soc 137(1):57–69. https://doi.org/10.1577/T07-029.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Whitehead PJP (1985) FAO Species catalogue: Clupeoid fishes of the world (Volume 7). Chirocentridae, Clupeidae and Pristigasteridae. FAO Fish Synop 125(7):1–303

Download references

Acknowledgements

P. Ghosh, A. Nazir, and Y. Banerjee thank the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India (MoES/PAMC/H&C/41/2013-PC-II DT.17/7/18) for funding the project. V.S. Rajawat thanks the Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, for facilitating the present project as a part of his Bachelor’s thesis under the supervision of P. Ghosh. We also thank three anonymous reviewers for their useful comments that improved the presentation and quality of the manuscript.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Contributions

Conceptualization: Prosenjit Ghosh, Veerendra Singh Rajawat, Aafaq Nazir, Yogaraj Banerjee, Ashim Kumar Nath, and Thamizharasan Sakthivel; Methodology: Prosenjit Ghosh, Veerendra Singh Rajawat, Aafaq Nazir, Yogaraj Banerjee, and Thamizharasan Sakthivel; Formal analysis and investigation: Prosenjit Ghosh, Aafaq Nazir, Veerendra Singh Rajawat, Yogaraj Banerjee, and Thamizharasan Sakthivel; Writing—original draft preparation: Aafaq Nazir and Veerendra Singh Rajawat; Writing—review and editing: Prosenjit Ghosh and Aafaq Nazir; Funding acquisition: Prosenjit Ghosh; Supervision: Prosenjit Ghosh.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Prosenjit Ghosh.

Ethics declarations

Ethics approval

The Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA) 2018, Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Government of India, does not provide ethical approval for food fishes like hilsa shad. However, we have followed institutional ethical guidelines for the treatment of animals in research.

Consent for publication

The authors give the publisher permission to publish our work.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Ghosh, P., Rajawat, V.S., Nazir, A. et al. Stable isotope on hilsa shad (Tenualosa ilisha) otoliths revealed migratory behavior of a population found in Hooghly River, West Bengal, India. Environ Biol Fish 105, 1909–1918 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01215-x

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-022-01215-x

Keywords

Navigation