The American Fisheries Society and the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers are holding this year's annual Fish Passage conference in Australia in December in collaboration with hosts Charles Sturt University and the New South Wales Government. The International Conference on River Connectivity, to be held in Albury from December 10 to 14 includes the First International Symposium on Hydropower and Fish Management.

Despite their abundance at one time in India and other Asian nations, wild mahseer populations have been declining because of degradation of aquatic ecosystems, urbanisation and indiscriminate fishing. Wild mahseer are populations are presently struggling for their mere existence.

An international workshop on mahseer conservation, propagation and rehabilitation will be held in Bhimtal, India from 23-24 April 2018. The workshop is organised by the ICAR-Directorate of Coldwater Fisheries Research in collaboration with the Coldwater Fisheries Society of India.

BRAQCON 2019 wil cover latest research and development in the broader themes of the conference in the form of special sessions, contributed papers, expert group discussions and brainstorming on issues facing aquaculturists and ecosystem managers in India and around the world. The conference themes include: Brackishwater ecosystems, estuarine biodiversity and conservation; aquaculture production systems; larviculture; fish and shellfish nutrition; environment and climate change; aquatic animal health; socio-economic and livelihood issues; and aquaculture genetics and biotechnology.

Integrated multi-trophic aquaculture is a flexible concept, on which many variations can be developed and should not be viewed as confined to open-water, marine systems. Freshwater integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, perhaps better known as aquaponics, applies the same principles as those used in marine integrated multi-trophic systems. In particular, using plants to reduce phosphorus (and other nutrient) levels in effluents can help farmers meet water quality guidelines and prevent eutrophication in the environment.

This collection contains video recordings of the lectures from the Regional Training Course on Culture-based Fisheries in Inland Waters, held at Nha Trang University, Vietnam. The objective of the course was to provide participants with the skills to assist local communities to plan and manage culture-based fisheries; a relatively simple and low cost technology that can deliver nutritional and economic benefits to rural communities with few livelihood options. The course was sponsored by the United Nations University Fisheries Training Programme.

Use of bioenergetic modelling to calculate stocking densities for mitten crab and mandarin fish in culture-based fisheries.

In this issue:

Regional network on culture-based fisheries and stock enhancement; trout fisheries in the uplands of Arunachal Pradesh - resources and opportunities; empowering young Indian women through entrepreneurship development - opportunities and constraints; a view on murrel (snakehead) fisheries in India; hybrid catfish Clarias batrachus x Heteropneustes fossilis produced by farmers in West Bengal, India; Backyard fish based pig farming using low-cost feed in Arunachal Pradesh - a success story; NACA Newsletter.

In the north-east hill region of India, integrated fish farming is one of the best alternatives for improving livelihoods as most of the houses in rural areas have access to ponds and livestock. Among livestock, pigs are a popular choice, particularly for the tribal population of the region, who account for a major portion of the population. Pigs can fit into diverse systems of management, and can be reared on a wide variety of waste materials.

Among the freshwater catfishes, magur (Clarias batrachus) is in great demand in eastern and north-eastern India; it is revered as highly nutritious and therapeutic in nature. During May-June 2016, Sri Sayer Mohammad Sarkar, an experienced magur breeder and seed producer, has achieved success in producing induced-bred hybrid seed of Heteropneustes fossilis and Clarias batrachus. His breeding protocol and experiences in nursery and growout of hybrid catfish are shared in this article.

Murrels (snakeheads) are the third most important group of freshwater fishes in India after carps and catfishes. Murrels are the most common and dominant group of air breathing freshwater fishes and are highly regarded as food fish. Murrels have a pair of cavities in the pharynx that have folded linings, richly supplied with blood vessels for taking in air. These organs enable these fishes to survive out of water for a few hours or migrate from one pool to another.