Abstract

Stock enhancement is the release of cultured juveniles into the wild to augment the natural population and optimize harvests by overcoming recruitment limitation. A responsible and scientifically-based approach to stock enhancement was proposed by Blankenship and Leber [American Fisheries Society Symposia 15:167–175 (1995)] and includes the development and refining of production and stocking plans in conjunction with a thorough process of evaluation and monitoring of the success and impacts of programs. Management of genetic resources is an essential component of stock enhancement and aims to conserve genetic diversity and avoid deleterious genetic effects on wild stocks. Development of a genetic program to achieve those goals requires assessing and monitoring genetic diversity in the hatchery and in the wild populations being supplemented, understanding the structure of wild populations and local adaptation to develop adequate broodstocks to produce offspring for stocking, and also evaluating and mitigating possible impacts of the program on fitness. Here we review and discuss the main current issues related to the manage-ment of genetic resources during marine stock enhancement in the context of on-going enhancement efforts for Mississippi spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus).

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