Aquaculture Species
Milkfish Culture
Distribution-
Found between the longitudes 30° E and 90° W
of the zero meridian and the latitudes 30° N and
30° S
This area covers the tropical and subtropical
waters of the Indian and Pacific Oceans
Life History
 Adult milkfish inhabit warm and shallow waters
around islands where reefs are well developed
 They spawn in clear and shallow waters above
sandy or coralline bottoms
 Eggs and larvae are pelagic and are carried by
currents to coastal areas
 After 2-3 weeks, larvae appear as fry (11-14
mm) along shores and enter mangrove swamps
and estuaries which serve as nurseries
 They remain in these areas for around one
month and upon reaching the juvenile stage (50
mm) migrate into coastal lagoons or move
upstream along rivers
 They return to the sea for final maturation and
spawning
Reproductive Biology
 Sexually mature milkfish measure around 50-
120 cm and weigh between 5-7 kg
 Milkfish usually reach sexual maturity within 5
years when reared in cages
 Milkfish fry are obtained by either collecting
them from the wild or from production in
hatcheries
Fry Collection
 Collected along sandy beaches, river mouths,
tidal creeks, and mangrove swamps
 Most fry grounds are located on the western and
southern coasts of islands
 Fry abundance depends on seasonality and
varies across latitudes but mostly peaks during
May and October
Hatchery Production
 Mature broodstock are placed in tanks or cages
at a male to female ratio of 1:1 or 1:2
 Eggs are collected using a rotating sweeper (for
cages) or by airlift operated nets or skimming of
surface waters (for tanks)
 Females can produce up to 2.5 M eggs per
season, with around 80% being viable eggs and
80% hatching into fry
 Milkfish larvae are reared in concrete tanks
usually 1 m deep with filtered seawater and
aeration
 Larval rearing tanks (LRT) are painted yellow
 Larvae are initially fed with Chlorella and
rotifers during the culture period of 21-25 days
but larvae only start to feed during the 3rd day
when their mouths are open
Checking Fry Condition
 Observe fry visually. Healthy fry should circle
continuously in the same direction
 Swirl the water. Healthy fry will swim against
the water
 Tap the container or move your hand over it.
Healthy fry will quickly react and try to avoid
any stressor
Nursery Culture
 Nursery pond is prepare following standard
procedure of pond preparation for growing
lablab
 Fry are stocked at a rate of around 30-50 fry/sq.
m
  Fry are first acclimatized by gradually replacing
water in fry bags or basins with water from the
pond
 Fry are grown until they reach the fingerling
stage (50-150 g) over 2-3 months
 Fingerlings are harvested by using the pasulang
method
Transition and Grow-out
 Extensive Culture
 Fingerlings are stocked at a rate of
3000-5000 pcs/ha
 Fed using natural food throughout the
culture period
 Lablab
 Lumot
 Plankton
 Culture period could last from 4-6
months
 Semi-intensive Culture
 Fingerlings are stocked at a rate of
5000-10000 pcs/ha
 Fed using natural food during the first
month of culture and supplemented with
feeds until the end of the culture period
 Culture period could last from 3-4
months
 Intensive Culture
 Fingerlings are stocked at a rate of
>10000 pcs/ha
 Fed using commercial feeds at 2-5% of
the fish biomass given 2-3 times daily
 Culture period could last from 3-4
months
 Aeration is supplied (paddlewheel) and
partial water change is carried out
regularly
 Modular System Culture
 Series of pond modules with an area
ratio of 1:2:4 are utilized
 Culture period in each module lasts 30-
45 days after which stocks are
transferred to a larger module.
 Vacated module is then prepared for
regrowing natural food
 Stocking density is based on 3000-4000
pcs/ha in the last module
 6-8 harvests can be done per year
Harvesting
 Fish are harvested using the pasulang method
 Immediately placed in chilled water (4° C) to
immediately kill the fish, preserve quality, and
prevent scale loss due to handling
Tilapia Culture
General Info
 Family Chichlidae – native to Africa
 First tilapia introduced in the Philippines was
Tilapia mossambica in the 1950’s
 Tilapia niloticus introduced in the 1970’s
 Various species of tilapia cultured
 T. nilotica
 T. mossabica
 T. aurea
 T. zilli
 T. hornorum
Biology
 Good for aquaculture because
 Low in the food chain
 Matures early
 Breeds often
  Resistant to diseases
 Tolerates crowding
 Easily adapts to various habitats
 Omnivorous
 Sexually mature in 2-3 months at 15-40 g
 Can spawn once a month and takes place
throughout the year although some species
prefer warmer waters for spawning (not below
28°C)
 Mouthbrooders – T. nilotica, mossambica, and
aurea
 Eggs hatch in 3-5 days and free
swimming fry could be seen 8-10 days
after hatching
 100-500 eggs per spawning
 Substratum spawner – T. zilli
 Lays eggs on a stone or smooth
substrate
 Around 5000 eggs per spawning
All Male Culture
Requires pure strains of tilapia specie
 Manual Sexing
 Examination of urogential papilla
located behind the anus
 Females have broad and round papilla
with 2 openings
 Males have tapering papilla with only
one opening at the tip
Seed Production (Ponds)
 Can be done with fish 10cm or longer
 Time consuming, labor intensive, 80-
90% accurate
 Sex Reversal
 Male sex hormones are added to feeds
for fry to change genetically female
tilapias into functional males (no
changes in chromosomes)
 Methyltestoterone is mixed with feed at
a rate of 60 mg per kg of feed
 Given to newly hatched fry for 3-4
weeks
 Feeding rate is 30% of fry biomass in
the 1st week, 25 % in the 2nd week, and
20% in the 3rd week given six times a
day
 Success rate is 90-100%
 Hybridization
 Cross-breeding different species of
tilapia to produce all-male or
predominantly male offspring
 T. mossambica female x T.
aurea male
 T. nilotica female x T. aurea
male
 T. mossambica female x T.
hornorum male
 T. nilotica female x T.
hornorum male
 YY males (supermales)
 Males with a YY genotype are produced
in order to yield all male offspring when
crossed with normal females
 Four generations are required to produce
YY males
 Use ponds 30Seed Production (Tanks)0-500 sq.
m at 0.5-1 m depth
 Breeder 80-100 g are stocked at a density of 2-4
fish/ sq. m
 Male to female ratio = 1:3
 Feed with feeds containing 20-30% crude
protein at 3% body weight
  Fry are collected daily starting on the 10th-12th
day using dip nets or fry dozers
 2-5 fry/sq. m/ day can be produced
Seed Production (Tanks)
 Use tanks 4-100 sq. m at 0.5-1 m depth
 Breeders 100-200 g are stocked at a density of
400 g fish fish biomass/ sq. m
 Male to female ratio = 1:3
 Feed with feeds containing 20-30% crude
protein at 3% body weight
 Fry are collected daily starting on the 10th-12th
day using dip nets or fry dozers with the
production cycle lasting 21 days
 18-20 fry/sq. m/ day can be produced
Growout
 Stock at 2-6 fish per square meter depending on
the intensity of the culture system
 Feed with 20% crude protein at 2-5% body
weight, 2-3 times a day
 Culture period lasts 4-5 months to reach
marketable size of 100-200 grams per fish
Harvesting
 Stop feeding 48 hours before harvest
 Partially drain the pond (reduce water by half)
 Tilapia can then be harvested using a seine and
immediately placed in chilled water
Shrimp Culture
Life History
 Eggs hatch after 12-15 hours
 Nauplius stage (NI-NVI) – 2-3 days
 Zoea stage (ZI-ZIII) – 5-6 days
 Mysis stage (MI-MIII) – 4-5 days
 Post larval stage (PL) – those used for growout
ar PL15-25
 Reach sexual maturity after 10 months
Seed Production
 Spawners are usually sourced from the wild but
spawners grown under controlled conditions are
now preferred for biosecurity reasons
 Specific Pathogen Free (SPF)
 Females are 70-150 g while males are 45-120 g
at a ratio of 1-2 females per male stocked at 3-5
shrimp/sq. m
 To hasten ovarian maturation, ablation is done
 Gonad inhibiting hormone (GIH) is
located in the eyestalk
 Feed spawners with commercial pellets (with
6% lipid) and natural food like mussels and
squid
 Reduce light intensity to 100 lux
 Spawning tanks are painted black or grey with
white sand substrate
 Use a flow through system that will enable 100-
400% daily water exchange
Larval Rearing
 LRT size could range from 2-20 tons
 Stock with nauplii at a rate of 50-100 nauplii per
liter
 Feeding scheme
 Algae (Skeletonema or Chaetoceros)
 ZI-PL5
 Artemia nauplii
 MI-PL5
 Formulated larval feed
 Beyond PL5
Growout
  Extensive
 10000-50,000 pcs/ha
 40-50 cm water depth
 Occasional water change along with the
tides
Semi-intensive
 50,000-100,000 pcs/ha
 100-120 cm water depth
 Regular water change along with the
tides and with the use of a pump
 Use of natural food, supplemental feeds,
and commercial feeds
 Use of natural food with occasional
feeding
 Intensive
 100,000-400,000 pcs/ha
 120-150 cm water depth
 Constant water change using pumps
with supplemental aeration
 Sole use of commercial feeds
 Super-Intensive
 400,000-800,000 pcs/ha
 150-200 cm water depth
 Constant water change using pumps
with supplemental aeration using long
arm paddle wheels
 Sole use of commercial feeds
 Probiotics are sometimes used
Harvesting
 Bagnets mounted on wooden frames are place in
grooves of the gate
 Water is drained and shrimps are collected in the
bagnet
 Remaining shrimps in the ponds are hand-picked
 Immersed in chilled water for 5-10 minutes,
sorted, and packed in crushed ice
Mitigating Environmental Impact
 Use of semi-intensive method
 Practice of zero water exchange
 Biofloc system
 Treatment of waste water in reservoirs
stocked with fish, while mussels,
oysters, and seaweeds can act as
biofilters
 Chlorination eliminates pathogens
 Aerated to remove toxic gases
 Treated water is reused for grow out
Seaweed Culture
General Info
 Seaweeds are also referred to as macroalgae or
macrophytes
 Classified by pigmentation
 Green algae – Chlorophyta
 Brown algae – Phaeophyta
 Red algae – Rhodophyta
 Blue-green algae - Cyanophyta
Economic Importance
 Used as food
 Over 60 species are eaten in the
Philippines
 Used as medicinal herbs
 Prevents goiter and internal disorders
 Treats wounds, burns, and rashes
 Used as a laxative
  Digenea simplex is used as a vermifuge
(pang-purga)
Economic Importance
 Source of phycocollooids
 Polysaccharides that can for colloids or
gel systems in water
 Carageenan
 Used in dairy products as a
stabilizer and as a gelling agent
in cosmetics, paints, and
pharmaceuticals
 5 types: kappa, iota, lambda,
mu, and gamma
 Kappaphycus alvarezii – kappa
carageenan
 Eucheuma denticulatum – iota
carageenan
 Agar
 Used as medium for microbial
specimens, clarifying agent in
wine, beer, and coffee
production, stabilizer in bakery
products
 Extracted from Gracilaria,
Gelidium, Gelidiella, and
Pterocladia
 Alginic Acid
 Used as emulsifier and stabilizer
in food, paper, paint, and
textiles
 Extracted from Sargassum,
Laminaria, and Turbinaria
Culture
 Most common species cultured in the
Philippines are Kappaphycus alvarezii
(Eucheuma cotonii) and Eucheuma denticulatum
(Eucheuma spinosum)
 Site selection
 Sheltered from strong waves and
currents
 Moderate water movement
 Sandy or coralline bottom
 Far from freshwater sources
(stenohaline)
 At least 1 m depth during low tide
Farming Methods
 Fixed off-bottom method
 For shallow areas
 Pointed wooden stakes are driven into
the substratum
 10 m long monofilament lines are tied
between stakes with 1 m interval
between lines
 Distance to the ground is adjusted to
ensure that seaweeds are not exposed to
the air or sun during low tide
 Lines are positioned parallel to the water
current
Farming Methods
 Fixed off-bottom method
Farming Methods
 Floating method
  For deeper areas
 4-5 nylon lines are attached to wooden
supports with corner ends anchored to
the substratum
 Floaters are attached to the wooden
supports
 Lines are spaced 30 cm apart
 Gracilaria (gulaman)
 Grown in ponds
 Suitable sites
 Located near seawater and
freshwater supplies
 Optimal salinity is 14-24 ppt
 Protected from strong winds
 Pond bottom should be near
zero tide level
 Gracilaria (gulaman)
 Rice planting method
 0.5-5 ha pond size
 Sandy, muddy pond bottom is
preferred
 Seedstocks 15-20 g are staked
on the ponds bottom
 Distance between plants is 10-
15 cm
 Harvested after 45-60 days
Grouper Culture
General Info
 Considered a high value fish especially when
sold live
 Over 40 species distributed in tropical waters
 Species cultured in the Philippines
 Epinephelus coioides (Green grouper)
 Epinephelus malabaricus (Malabar
grouper)
Breeding
 Considered as protogynous hermaphrodytes
 Mature as females and turn into males
with age
 For E. malabaricus, fish become males
after 5 years
 Sex reversal
 Incorporation of methyltestosterone in
feeds given 3 times a week for 2 months
at a dose of 1 mg/kg fish
 2-3 year old groupers were already able
to produce milt
 Induced Spawning
 Achieved by injecting human chorionic
gonadotropin (HCG) and pituitary gland
extract
Pond Culture
 Prepare pond similar to milkfish culture
 Adjust water depth to 1-2 m
 Stock with adult tilapia at 5000-10,000 per
hectare and allow to reproduce
 Tilapia fingerlings will serve sa food
 Stock grouper juveniles (>7.2 cm) at 5000
pcs/ha
 Give chopped trash fish every other day at 5%
grouper biomass divided into two feedings per
day
 Cultured until groupers reach 400-600 g
Cage Culture
 Site selection is typical of any mariculture cage
operation
 Water depth should not be less than 3 m at low
tide
  Cage module consist of 4-12 compartments
supported by either a bamboo or steel frame
 Each compartment can measure 5x5x3 m
 Nursery cages use nets with a mesh size of 0.5-1
cm while growout cages use nets with a mesh
size of 2-5 cm
 In order for eggs to attach to the pleopod hairs
on the female abdominal flap, a sandy substrate
is provided in spawning tanks
 Ablation can also be done to hasten gonad
maturation and spawning
Life History

 Shelters made of PVC pipes (5 cm diameter or  Zoea

bigger) are placed inside the cages
 5 stages (Z1-Z5)
 Nursery cages
 Megalopa
 2-10 cm TL; 50-75 fish/sq m
 Molts only once and turns into instar
 Feed with trash fish at 10% body weight
 Crab Instar
 Growout cages
 Crablet
 10-15 cm TL: 10-20 fish/sq m
 Adult
 Feed with trash fish at 5% body weight
Culture
 Harvesting is done when fish reach marketable
size (400 g) by gently lifting up the cage and  Ponds
scooping out the fish  Milkfish or shrimp ponds can be used
MudCrab Culture  Fenced with bamboo or nylon net to
General Info prevent escape

 Inhabit brackish and marine waters and prefer  Extends 30 cm above water line
muddy and sandy bottoms and 60 cm below pond bottom

 Cultured Mudcrabs  Stocked with juveniles at 5000-10000

per hectare
 Scylla serrata – King mudcrab
 Initially fed with 10% biomass then
 S. olivacea – native crab/orange mud reduced to 5% biomass (trash fish,
crab snails, animal entrails, etc.)

 S. tranquebarica – purple mudcrab  Harvest is done after 120-150 days

using the pasulang method
 S. paramamosain – green mudcrab
 Cages
Reproduction
 Pens in mangroves
 Male mudcrabs deposit sperm in the
spermathecae of newly molted females  aquasilviculture

 Females can store sperm good for 2-3 spawnings Other Cultured Species

 Each female can release to as much as 2M eggs Marine/Brackish Water

per spawning
 Perna viridis
  Modulus netcalfei  Red tilapia

 Crasostrea iradalei  Inbreeding

 Haliotis asinina  Mating of closely related individuals

 Lates calcalifer  Done to concentrate genes of a highly

desired trait
 Lutjanus sp.
Genetic Concepts
Hippocampus sp
 Triploidy
Fresh Water
 Has 3 sets of chromosomes
 Macrobrachium rosenbergii
 Done by shocking egg immediately after
 Clarias gariepinus fertilization (UV or chemicals)
 Clarias macrocephalus  Increased growth rate
 Clarias batrachus  Sterile
 Pangasius hypothalamus  Transgenesis
t
 Transfer of novel DNA gene into the
 Pangasius bocourti genome of cultured animal to improve a
b particular trait
 Aristichthys nobilis Genetic Concepts
 Cyprinus carpio  Detection Methods
 Hypopthalmicthys molitrix  Southern blot – uses DNA
 Chana striata  Northern blot – uses RNA
Genetic Concepts  Western blot – uses protein
 Crossbreeding  Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) –
amplifies specific fragments of DNA
 Hybrid vigor (Heterosis) – offspring
surpass its parents for one or more traits

 T. niloticus x T. aureus – cold tolerant

 T. niloticus x T. mossambicus – saline

tolerant