This study evaluated the effects of dietary Aloe vera gel on growth performance and haematological characteristics of juvenile African catfish (Clarias gariepinus). A total of 300 juveniles, initially weighing 14.00 g and measuring 12.00 cm, were distributed among 15 aquaria at 20 fish per aquarium in a completely randomised design with five dietary treatments and three replicates per treatment. The experimental feeds contained 40 g (T1), 30 g (T2), 20 g (T3), 10 g (T4) or 0 g (T5; control) of aloe vera gel and feeding continued for 56 days. Growth, feed utilisation, survival and selected blood indices were assessed. Table 3 recorded the highest mean weight value in T1 (48.92 ± 0.42), alongside the highest feed intake (37.53 ± 1.66), reported length value (17.28 ± 0.05) and specific growth rate (4.49 ± 0.08). The control exhibited the lowest corresponding weight (35.87 ± 0.42), feed intake (25.66 ± 0.06) and length (15.12 ± 0.05) values, together with the highest recorded survival measure (3.00 ± 1.00) and feed conversion ratio (1.51 ± 0.00). Haematological indices differed among treatments (p < 0.05). T1 showed the lowest red blood cell count and haemoglobin concentration, whereas T4 showed the highest haemoglobin concentration. Overall, the findings indicate a growth response to dietary aloe vera, accompanied by treatment-dependent differences in blood indices, and do not establish a uniformly favourable inclusion level.
Dry-fish trading provides market opportunities in northern Bangladesh, yet local evidence on species composition, trade patterns, and traders' circumstances remains limited. This study assessed dried-fish species diversity, supply routes, marketing practices, and the socioeconomic conditions of retailers in Lalmonirhat and Kurigram districts. A market survey was undertaken from March to December 2025 in six purposively selected markets. Questionnaire-based interviews were conducted with 30 retailers, and information was cross-checked with key informants. Descriptive data were processed using Microsoft Excel. Across the selected markets, 38 dried-fish species were recorded, comprising 21 freshwater and 17 marine species. Commonly available products included Loitta, Churi, Bata, Baim, Puti, Mola, Ilish, Poa, Rupchanda, Icha, Chela, and Kachki. Recorded prices ranged from BDT 240 to 1,300 per kilogram. The Teesta dried-fish market served as a distribution point for products supplied from several production and wholesale centres. The rainy season accounted for the largest reported share of peak marketing activity (56%), followed by winter (34%) and summer (10%). Among retailers, 53.3% were aged 35–50 years, while 46.6% reported daily earnings of BDT 1,000–2,000. Four marketing channels were identified. Respondents reported insufficient capital, high transportation costs, limited storage facilities, and unhygienic market conditions as major constraints. These findings describe the diversity and trading arrangements of the surveyed markets and indicate practical areas for improving storage, transportation, and market conditions.
Plastic pollution is commonly investigated within separate compartments, although particles and plastic-associated materials move through wastewater infrastructure, stormwater networks, rivers, sediments, aquifers, aquaculture facilities and fishing grounds. This disciplinary separation impedes source attribution, comparison of exposure estimates and evaluation of controls. This critical narrative review integrates evidence published from 2008 to 31 August 2026, drawing on verified experimental, observational, modelling and synthesis studies. It examines how material properties, hydrological connectivity and treatment processes jointly shape plastic transport, retention and biological exposure, with particular attention to sustainable aquaculture and fisheries. Conventional wastewater treatment captures substantial fractions of the particles measured in plant influent, but retained material is frequently transferred to sludge, and residual discharge remains relevant where effluent volumes are large. River emissions are strongly influenced by episodic runoff, floodplain retention and remobilisation; consequently, instantaneous concentrations poorly approximate catchment-scale delivery. Groundwater contamination is documented in karst, shallow and other vulnerable aquifers, yet filtration, preferential flow, sampling artefacts and limited temporal coverage restrict the estimation of subsurface fluxes. Aquaculture systems receive plastics through source water, equipment, feed and atmospheric inputs, while fishing activity generates additional macroplastic hazards through lost gear. Laboratory studies demonstrate organism-level responses under some exposure conditions, including oxidative stress and reproductive effects, but these findings cannot automatically be translated into population-level losses or human health risks. A source-to-receptor framework is proposed that separates particle abundance from mass flux, identifies changes in particle characteristics across compartments, and links biological evidence to environmentally plausible exposure. Priorities include harmonised size-resolved measurements, paired surface-water–groundwater monitoring, event-based mass balances, realistic chronic exposure designs and intervention evaluation across the entire material lifecycle. Sustainable management requires upstream plastic prevention alongside independently assessed treatment and gear-retention measures, rather than reliance on end-of-pipe removal alone.
Aims: To describe monthly sea surface temperature (SST) and depth of octopus fishing grounds in the northern Alas Strait, Indonesia, and their relationships with Octopus cyanea production and catch per unit effort (CPUE). Study Design: Descriptive-correlational observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Fishing grounds used by fishers from Seruni Mumbul (East Lombok) and Poto Tano (West Sumbawa) villages, West Nusa Tenggara, April–August 2025. Methodology: Sixteen fishing grounds were identified through fisher interviews. Each landed octopus was weighed and recorded with its vessel code and date; CPUE was calculated as kg per trip. Monthly SST was derived from daily level-4 OSTIA data (0.05°) and depth from BATNAS bathymetry. Spearman and repeated measures correlation (rrm) were applied to 59 fishing ground–month pairs. Results: Mean monthly SST ranged from 28.15 °C (August) to 29.45 °C (May), while within-month differences among fishing grounds were 0.27–0.41 °C. Production totalled 1568 kg (1400 individuals) from 499 trips, peaking in May (539 kg); 66.3% came from the Sumbawa side. Monthly CPUE was stable (3.0–3.3 kg per trip), so production followed the number of trips. SST was not significantly correlated with production (ρ = 0.21; P = .11) or CPUE (ρ = −0.04; P = .77). Within fishing grounds, production was slightly higher in warmer months (rrm = 0.31; P = .04), but not after effort standardisation (rrm = −0.06; P = .71), because trips were more frequent in warmer months (rrm = 0.36; P = .02). Depth (2.7–41.2 m) was not significantly correlated with production (ρ = −0.16; P = .57; n = 15). Conclusion: Within the narrow SST range of one season, SST did not explain CPUE, and landed production mainly reflected fishing effort. Monitoring should record effort, including zero-catch trips, and environmental data at each fishing ground over several seasons.
Information on dietary composition and feeding patterns of economically important freshwater fish in Merowe Reservoir remains limited, particularly regarding temporal and spatial variation. This study examined the stomach contents of Oreochromis niloticus and Clarias gariepinus, with emphasis on monthly and location-related differences. A total of 398 specimens of each species were collected with gillnets and traditional local nets between September 2021 and August 2022. Stomach contents were examined visually and microscopically, and food items were assessed using frequency of occurrence and percentage abundance. For O. niloticus, plant material was the most prominent recorded food category (53.1%), followed by sand/mud (43.4%), blue-green algae (36.6%), green algae (24.8%), zooplankton (21.4%) and unidentified food (17.2%). For C. gariepinus, the reported categories included sand/mud (approximately 79%), insect parts (69.7%), zooplankton (54.9%) and fish remains (32.6%). The recorded food categories varied among months and sampling locations. At Sad, unidentified food reached 60% of the location-specific values for O. niloticus, while zooplankton reached 45.2% at Bearty and green algae reached 44.4% at Shery. For C. gariepinus, fish remains reached 38.6% at Shery. The observations indicate that both species consumed diverse food categories and exhibited temporal and spatial differences in recorded stomach contents. These findings provide descriptive baseline information for future assessments of feeding ecology in the reservoir.
