Frédéric Marchand

The effects of Passive Integrated Transponder tags on survival and growth of juvenile brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) and their use for studying movement in a small river

From 1993 to 1995, more than 2000 of 0 + brown trout (Salmo trutta L.) were captured in a small brook in October and released after clipping the left pelvic fin. More than 1700 of them were also tagged with a small Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tag (11 mm long) implanted in the body cavity. Tagged juveniles were recaptured in May in the brook but also one year later in the river Oir, and continuously in a trap during spring downstream migration in the river Oir.

Assessing precocious maturation in salmon using ultrasound imaging

Salmonids are characterized by a large diversity of life histories, but their study is often limited by the imperfect observation of the true state of an individual in the wild. Challenged by the need to reduce uncertainty of empirical data, we have taken advantage of recent development in medical imaging techniques to assess precocious maturation in Atlantic salmon. We compared traditional phenotypic (external) examination and ultrasound (internal) examination and provided recommendations on fish handling and ultrasound image interpretation. By seeing the unseen, ultrasound imaging offers great opportunities for ecological studies in the wild.

A new method to estimate habitat potential for Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar): predicting the influence of dam removal on the Sélune River (France) as a case study

Guillaume Forget*, Jean-Luc Baglinière, Frédéric Marchand, Arnaud Richard, and Marie Nevoux Agrocampus Ouest-INRA, UMR ESE “Ecology & Ecosystem Health”, 35042 Rennes, France INRA U3E “Experimental Unit on Ecology & Ecotoxicology”, 35042 Rennes, France AFB “French Agency for Biodiversity”, 27310 Bourg-Achard, France AFB “French Agency for Biodiversity”, Pôle Gest’Aqua, 35042 Rennes, France *Corresponding author: tel: þ33 (0)223485529; e-mail: guillaume.forget@inra.fr.

BRC4Env, a network of Biological Resource Centres for research in environmental and agricultural sciences

The Biological Resource Centre for the Environment BRC4Env is a network of Biological Resource Centres (BRCs) and collections whose leading objectives are to improve the visibility of genetic and biological resources maintained by its BRCs and collections and to facilitate their use by a large research community, from agriculture research to life sciences and environmental sciences. Its added value relies on sharing skills, harmonizing practices, triggering projects in comparative biology, and ultimately proposing a single-entry portal to facilitate access to documented samples, taking into account the partnership policies of research institutions as well as the legal frame which varies with the biological nature of resources. BRC4Env currently includes three BRCs: the Centre for Soil Genetic Resources of the platform GenoSol, in partnership with the European Conservatory of Soil Samples; the Egg Parasitoids Collection (EP-Coll); and the collection of ichthyological samples, Colisa. BRC4Env is also associated to several biological collections: microbial consortia (entomopathogenic bacteria, freshwater microalgae…), terrestrial arthropods, nematodes (plant parasitic, entomopathogenic, animal parasitic...), and small mammals. The BRCs and collections of BRC4Env are involved in partnership with academic scientists, as well as private companies, in the fields of medicinal mining, biocontrol, sustainable agriculture, and additional sectors. Moreover, the staff of the BRCs is involved in many training courses for students from French licence degree to Ph.D, engineers, as well as ongoing training.