biostudies-literatureMulvaney WCalifornia Department of Water ResourcesCalifornia Department of Fish and Wildlife1478https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9219441biostudies-literatureUnknown12(12)The rapid decline of longfin smelt <i>Spirinchus thaleichthys</i>, a threatened euryhaline forage fish in California, is a serious concern for scientists and resource managers. To recover and conserve this species, a captive culture program was initiated, focusing on the collection, captive rearing and breeding of wild broodstock, and the rearing of their offspring. Although progress has been made in the collection of broodstock and the production and culturing of larvae, no studies have evaluated the rearing of juvenile life stages in captivity. The present study examines methodological considerations for culturing F1 juvenile longfin smelt, specifically, the first efforts toward weaning juveniles to a dry commercial pellet feed. Cultured juvenile longfin smelt were fed live <i>Artemia</iAnimals : an open access journal from MDPICaptive Rearing of Longfin Smelt <i>Spirinchus thaleichthys</i>: First Attempt of Weaning Cultured Juveniles to Dry Feed.PMC92194414600012770P1806019Rahman MMLewis LSMulvaney WHung TCCheng JfalseCaptive Rearing of Longfin Smelt <i>Spirinchus thaleichthys</i>: First Attempt of Weaning Cultured Juveniles to Dry Feed.The rapid decline of longfin smelt <i>Spirinchus thaleichthys</i>, a threatened euryhaline forage fish in California, is a serious concern for scientists and resource managers. To recover and conserve this species, a captive culture program was initiated, focusing on the collection, captive rearing and breeding of wild broodstock, and the rearing of their offspring. Although progress has been made in the collection of broodstock and the production and culturing of larvae, no studies have evaluated the rearing of juvenile life stages in captivity. The present study examines methodological considerations for culturing F1 juvenile longfin smelt, specifically, the first efforts toward weaning juveniles to a dry commercial pellet feed. Cultured juvenile longfin smelt were fed live <i>Artemia</i2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 Jun2025-04-18T23:01:54.671Z2025-04-07T10:46:37.348ZS-EPMC92194413573981510.3390/ani12121478