Location: Warmwater Aquaculture Research Unit
Project Number: 6066-10600-001-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Oct 28, 2024
End Date: Oct 27, 2029
Objective:
1. Improve oxygen delivery in ponds to minimize impacts of hypoxia on catfish physiology and improve growth.
1.A. Determine oxygen transfer performance of alternative aeration equipment other than paddlewheel aerators.
1.B. Introduce alternative dissolved oxygen (DO) automated control strategies in aquaculture tanks and ponds to improve monitoring and control of system dissolved oxygen distribution and concentration.
1.C. Evaluate sustainable production of stocker size catfish in low-head recirculating systems.
1.D. Measure effect of membrane lined ponds on fish production, water quality, and erosion.
1.E. Measure effects of hypoxia on catfish metabolism and gut-passage.
2. Identify factors that negatively impact product quality and develop mitigation strategies.
2.A. Develop genome resources for Marsh Ramshorn and Ghost Ramshorn snails.
2.B. Managing trematode risk in catfish ponds through control of host snails.
2.C. Evaluate microbial ecological conditions favoring cyanobacterial blooms.
2.D. Identify cyanobacterial species in catfish aquaculture ponds with the ability to produce off-flavors.
Approach:
Most freshwater aquaculture production is from earthen ponds because capital costs are low, and the natural biochemical processes can provide an adequate environment for fish growth. Catfish is the largest freshwater domestic aquaculture industry that uses ponds with over 90% of production confined to Mississippi, Alabama, Arkansas, and Texas. Catfish production and acreage has contracted over 30% from its peak in the early 2000s. Adoption of intensive aeration, pond structural modifications, automated monitoring systems, and use of hybrids have helped increased per acre production and profitability of the industry since 2015. However, like other food production systems, the ecological sustainability of aquaculture pond production is threatened by a range of risks. The inflationary costs of labor, feed, and energy with climatic temperature changes and greater periods of drought necessitate innovative technology for the industry to remain competitive. Furthermore, production and product quality can suffer from environmental issues, such as disease, parasites, and off-flavor compounds produced by cyanobacterial species. Existing management strategies can present a significant cost to farmers and, in some cases, a risk to fish health.
The Project Plan aims to address pre-harvest production issues in three ways: 1) evaluate alternative production strategies that provide greater culture densities, reduces predation and environmental impacts, and has greater water use efficiency; 2) reducing the economic and ecological impacts of catfish disease by controlling important vectors; and 3) developing a better understanding of the pond conditions and microbial community characteristics that lead to production of off-flavor compounds by cyanobacteria. These technologies and strategies together will improve the economic, environmental, and social sustainability of the catfish aquaculture industry thereby enhancing food security, increase economic opportunities for inland underserved rural sectors, increase crop diversity, and be pro-active in accomplishing the USDA global warming goal with the 1.5°C constraint needed to minimize climate change impacts.
