Writing Resources
Stress is primarily a physical response when the body feels it is under attack The body enters a state of fight or flight and sets up the body for physical activity Similarly to humans fishes have the ability to cope with stress and its implications and as such get stressed the same way as humans do As Bartelme 2010 puts it stressor in fish could be defined as a stimulus that requires a physiological response by the animal in an attempt to adapt to that stimulus In other words stress is an internal physiological state that is caused by external conditions If severe enough fishes enter a distressed state that often leads to decreased performance which is a habitual undesirable aspect of production Most situations in which a fish experiences a change in its natural environment or a disturbance in its behavior are able to cause stress There are many different factors that influence stress in fish however stress protects the fish and ensures its survival As Bartelme 2010 states when a fish feels threatened the fish senses the threat and in response releases catecholamine and cortisol into the bloodstream which gives the fish an energy boost to help escape or evade the threat Catecholamines function as a hormone that helps the body respond to stress and prepare it for a fight or flight reaction while cortisol is a hormone that helps regulate stress in the body Moreover fish stress can either be short or long term
