This study was designed to examine the immune response in Korean rockfish during water temperature fluctuation and to elucidate the factors contributing to streptococcal pathogenesis in cultured Korean rockfish, S. schlegeli. We investigated cumulative mortality against Streptococcus iniae (FP5228 strain) infection in the exposed Korean rockfish (39.7±5.8 g) to environmentally relevant temperature (Control, 23℃; High temperature, 28℃ and 23℃ and 28℃ with 12 hours interval exchange, 23↔28℃) for 48 hours. Also, the expression of the mRNA related to the immune response genes (heat shock protein 70, interleukin- 1β, lysozyme g-type and thioredoxin-like 1) were measured in spleen and head kidney by real-time PCR analysis in the exposed fish to thermal stress. In this study, the combined stress with bacterial challenge in fishes exposed to thermal stress lowered the survival rate than that of control (23℃). The cumulative mortality in the group of control, 28℃ and 23↔28℃ was 24%, 24% and 40% (P<0.05), respectively. Also, thermal stress modulated the mRNA level of immune related genes; heat shock protein 70, interleukin-1β, lysozyme g-type and thioredoxin-like 1 in Korean rockfish. The present study indicates that a high and sudden water temperature change affect immune responses and reduce the disease resistance in Korean rockfish.

To investigate the tolerance limit and critical thermal maximum (CTM), behavioral responses of wild goldeye rockfish Sebastes thompsoni according to exposure to high water temperature were observed using a continuous behavior tracking system. As a result, behavioral index (BI) of S. thompsoni in each temperature (20.0, 25.0, and 30.0°C) showed a significant difference (p<0.05) when compared with the value measured in a stable condition of 15.0°C. The activity level of S. thompsoni exposed to 25.0°C decreased sharply after 20 hours. Their rest time at the bottom of experiment chamber increased, and their normal swimming and metabolic activities were disturbed. In addition, at a high water temperature of 30.0°C, S. thompsoni reached the limit of resistance and showed a sub-lethal reaction of swimming behavior, with energy consumption in the body increased and all test organisms died. In conclusion, the eco-physiological response of S. thompsoni to water temperature varied greatly depending on the fluctuation range of the exposed temperature and the exposure time. In addition, the tolerance limit of S. thompsoni to high water temperature was predicted to be 25.0- 30.0°C. The maximum critical thermal that had a great influence on the survival of this species was found to be around 30.0°C.

This study was conducted to investigate the effects of underwater noise caused by pile driving during marine construction on fish. In this study, the three gray rockfish were released about 1 km away from the construction site of wind power generation on July 18, 2018 and traced using two acoustic telemetry techniques. The behavior of the fish was analyzed by calculating the moving distance, swimming speed and direction of the gray rockfish. In the results of the acoustic tracking using the ship, the rockfish moved about 2.11 km for about two hours at a speed of 0.28 ± 0.14 m/s (0.94 TL/s). The bottom depth of the trajectory of the rockfish was 1.0 ± 0.6 m on average. There was a significant directionality in swimming direction of the gray rockfish, and there was no significant correlation between the swimming direction and tidal current direction. Moving distance during 5 minutes (5MD) during pile driving and finishing operations between rock surface and bedrock were 0.94-0.96 times (76.0-77.0 m) and 1.81-2.73 times (146.0-219.5 m), respectively, compared with no pile driving. This study is expected to be used as a basic data of fish behavior research on underwater noise.