WWW.WAS.ORG • WORLD AQUACULTURE • JUNE 2024 37 rapidly toward solutions that will sustain aquaculture production. With support from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Fisheries’ Office of Aquaculture, a workshop was convened to characterize the state of the science behind the mortality syndrome, highlight urgent questions, and identify key priorities for future research that would illuminate the causes of mortality and possible strategies for mitigation. Twenty-eight workshop participants, selected based on prior research in SUMS and varying specializations, representing eight universities from New York to Texas convened at the VIMS campus in Gloucester Point, Virginia, on January 22 and 23, 2024 (Figure 3). These institutions included Stony Brook University, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science (UMCES), VIMS, North Carolina State University, University of Florida, Auburn University, Louisiana State University, and Texas A&M University Corpus Christi. Additional attendees represented the University of Washington and the Pacific Shellfish Institute, bringing perspectives from Pacific oyster aquaculture, also affected by unusual mortality, and NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Aquaculture (see sidebar). The workshop operated under six expressed objectives: 1. Define sudden unexplained spring/summer mortalities and differentiate them from other common mortality events. 2. Compile the best available data on a range of issues and describe the frequency and magnitude of the sudden mortality issue over the past decade. 3. Review past and ongoing studies of this problem. 4. Generate a list of current working hypotheses of potential causes of these mortalities. 5. By consensus, rank the above hypotheses by order of importance, likelihood, and testability to define three to five of the most promising research priorities. 6. Build a collaborative approach to collecting preliminary data and testing these hypotheses with open communication among teams. The workshop began with an initial series of short presentations by participants on past, current, and planned work on the unusual mortality. Collectively, these presentations helped define the extent, nature, and impacts of SUMS, and summarized current understanding of oyster performance in response to factors such as environmental stressors, ploidy differences, genetics and breeding, culture practices, and others. This was followed by group discussion that progressed toward identifying nine key research priorities within three broad categories: FIGURE 2. Oysters submitted for investigation of a SUMS event, displaying typically good condition. There is often little or no pathology observed with sudden mortality events. Photograph by Ryan Carnegie. FIGURE 3. Workshop participants gathered to define research priorities that can reduce the frequency and magnitude of SUMS events for commercial growers. Photograph by Rebecca Latourell. (CONTINUED ON PAGE 38) Bassem Allam Stony Brook University Corinne Audemard Virginia Institute of Marine Science Tal Ben-Horin North Carolina State University Sarah Bodenstein Louisiana State University Kayla Boyd Auburn University Christopher Brianik Stony Brook University Mark Brush Virginia Institute of Marine Science Ryan Carnegie Virginia Institute of Marine Science Nate Geyerhahn Virginia Institute of Marine Science Julia Grenn Virginia Institute of Marine Science Bobbi Hudson Pacific Shellfish Institute Karen Hudson Virginia Institute of Marine Science Matt LaGanke Virginia Institute of Marine Science Jerome La Peyre Louisiana State University Joey Matt Texas A&M University Corpus Christi Jan McDowell Virginia Institute of Marine Science Adriane Michaelis Virginia Institute of Marine Science Louis Plough University of Maryland Kimberly Reece Virginia Institute of Marine Science Scott Rikard Auburn University Steven Roberts University of Washington Andrew Scheld Virginia Institute of Marine Science Hamish Small Virginia Institute of Marine Science Jessica Small Virginia Institute of Marine Science Leslie Sturmer University of Florida Andrea Tarnecki Auburn University Bill Walton Virginia Institute of Marine Science Janet Whaley NOAA Fisheries’ Office of Aquaculture WORKSHOP PARTICIPANTS
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