WEEK 7: CULTURE METHOD

OF IMPORTANT MARINE
ORGANISM

DR. AHMAD AZFAR

Mariculture methods and practices
• Pond culture
• Pen and cage culture
• Open water culture
Pond Culture
Pen and cage culture
Open water culture
Pond culture
• Pond culture, or the breeding and rearing of fish in natural or artificial
basins, is the earliest form of aquaculture.
• Over the years, the practice has spread to almost all parts of the
world and is used for a wide variety of culture organisms in
freshwater, brackish water, and marine environments.
• It is carried out mostly using stagnant waters but can also be used in
running waters especially in highland sites with flowing water.
Pond management
Site selection
• Proper site selection is recognized as the first step guaranteeing the
eventual success of any aquaculture project and forms the basis for
the design, layout, and management of the project.
• For fish ponds, especially those to be used for coastal/brackishwater
aquaculture of high-value species like shrimps, site selection is critical
and should be given utmost attention.
Guideline for pond site selection
• Soil Quality
• Land elevation and tidal characteristics
• Vegetation
• Water supply and quality
• Accessibility
• Availability of manpower
Soil Quality
• Preferably, clay-loam, or sandy-clay for water retention and suitability
for diking
• Alkaline pH (7 and above) to prevent problems that result from acid-
sulphate soils (e.g., poor fertilizer response; low natural food
production and slow growth of culture species; probable fish kills).
Land elevation and tidal characteristics
• Preferably with average elevation that can be watered by ordinary
high tides and drained by ordinary low tides; tidal fluctuation
preferably moderate at 2-3 m. (Sites where tidal fluctuation is large,
say 4 m, are not suitable because they would require very large,
expensive dikes to prevent flooding during high tide. On the other
hand, areas with slight tidal fluctuation, say 1 m or less, could not be
drained or filled properly.)
Land elevation and tidal characteristics
General Pond layout
Basic component of a pond
• Pond compartments enclosed by dikes.
• Canals for supply and drainage of water to and from the pond
compartments.
• Gates or water control structures to regulate entry and exit of water
into and from the pond compartments.
Dikes
Dike impermeability
• Using good soil that contains enough clay.
• Building a central clayey core when using pervious soil material.
• Building a cut-off trench when the foundation is permeable.
• Applying good construction practices.
• Ensuring that the thickness of your dike is appropriate.
Dike construction
Gates
• Floor. The floor serves as the foundation of the structure and its elevation must be lower than the pond
bottom elevation. The floor of the main gate must not be exposed even during extreme low tides.
• Apron. The apron generally rests on the foundation piles, which are made of seasoned bamboo driven at 0.3
m. intervals into the soft soil with the butt end up. The apron serves as protection to scouring and future
seepage of water at the gate's sides.
• Cut-off-walls. Cut-off-walls are provided at both ends of the gate floor to prevent seepage and undercutting
of water over the gate's foundation. They extend down into the soil at a minimum depth of 0.60 m. and are
an integral part of the gate's foundation. Wooden sheet piles may be used for cut-off-wall.
• Side or breast walls. Side walls define the sluice way in addition to their being retaining wall for the dike fill.
Grooves or double cleats for flashboards and screens are built on these walls. The top of these walls are as
high as the top of the dike.
• Wing walls. Wing walls provide the transition from the sluice way into the main canal in addition to retaining
the earth at both sides of the gate. This transition improves the hydraulics of the flow by providing a control
on flow velocities from one bed material to another.
Gates
• Bridge or Catwalk. This is a reinforced concrete slab or thick wooden planks that span the side
walls. At least two catwalks are provided, located at regular intervals near the flashboard grooves.
• Flashboards. Slabs or flashboards are generally wooden pieces, 1"-1 ½" × 10" inserted into grooves
or double cleats. They are used to control the amount of water flowing through the gate.
• Screens. Screens are usually made of bamboo strips or of fine polyethylene meshes attached to a
wooden rectangular frame that fit into the grooves. The screens are used to prevent the exit of the
cultured fish and the entry of predators into the pond.
• Pillars. In wooden gates, these are vertical supports where wooden walls are nailed. They are
placed at regular intervals so that they form a frame work.
• Braces. In wooden gates, these wooden frames hold or fasten two or more pillars together or in
place. They control the steady opening of a gate.
Concrete
Culvert or pipe
Pond drains
Pond drains
Canals
• The main water supply canal starts from the main gate and usually traverses the
central portion of the fish farm.
• The canal bed should not be lower than, but rather sloping towards, the floor
elevation of the main gate.
• Secondary water supply canals are constructed in portions of the farm which
cannot be reached by the main canal. It starts from the main canal and traverses
the inner portion of the fishpond. It is usually constructed in large fishpond areas
and smaller than the main canal. 
• Tertiary canal is usually constructed to supply water in the nursery and transition
ponds. Because of the small size, it is sometimes said to be a part of the nursery
pond system. Some fish culturists modify the tertiary canal as a catching pond.
Canals
• A diversion canal, when necessary, is also constructed to protect the farm
from being flooded with run-off water coming from the watershed. It must be
strategically located so that run-off will empty on an established disposal
area, natural outlets or prepared individual outlets. It should have the
capacity to carry at least the peak run-off from the contributing watershed for
a 10-year frequency storm. The slope of the diversion canal should be in such
a way that water flows towards the drainage area.
• A drainage canal is constructed when there is a need to have a separate canal
for draining rearing ponds. This is to improve water management in the pond
system. It is usually located at the other side of the pond, parallel to the
supply canal. A drainage canal is recommended in intensive culture, especially
of shrimps.
Canals
Pond liming
• Pond preparation for fertilization
• Calcium oxide (CaO) = Quicklime
• Calcium carbonate(CaCO3)= Limestone
• Neutral-alkaline pH (7-8)
• Advantages
• Favourable environment for microbial growth
• Raise pH to desirable levels
• Pond disinfectant – kill parasites
• Increase the effectiveness of fertilizer
Pond fertilization
• 2 type of fertilizers
• Organic fertilizers
• Animal manures, compost, sewage

• Inorganic fertilizers (Synthetic fertilizer)

• Contain concentrated NPK (Nitrogen, phosphorus, kalium)
• Superphosphate, triple superphosphate
• Increase primary productivity
• Stimulate phytoplankton production (autotrophic)
• Stimulate bacteria & zooplankton (heterotrophic)
Fish food
• Natural food is found naturally in the pond. It may include detritus, bacteria,
plankton, worms, insects, snails, aquatic plants and fish. Organic fertilization,
can help you to provide a good supply of natural food to your fish. 
• Supplementary feeds are feeds regularly distributed to the fish in the pond.
They usually consist of cheap materials locally available such as terrestrial
plants, kitchen wastes or agricultural by-products. 
• Complete feeds may also be regularly distributed. They are made from a
mixture of carefully selected ingredients to provide all the nutrients necessary
for the fish to grow well. They must be made in a form which the fish find
easy to eat and digest. These feeds are quite difficult to make on the farm and
are usually quite expensive to buy.
Selecting supplementary feed
• of good nutritional values
• well accepted by the fish you plan to feed
• cheap in price: for a given food quality, the lower the cost, the better
• available most of the fish-growing season
• of minimum additional cost for transport, handling and processing
• easy to handle and store.
Increase feeding frequency
• reducing food wastage
• reducing dissolved oxygen consumption and improving water quality
• reducing nutrient losses attributable to leaching, thereby
improving food quality
• improving uniformity of fish sizes, giving more possibility for the less
aggressive fish to feed
• improving fish growth and feed utilization
Stop feeding
• when the water temperature is too low or too high
• when dissolved oxygen content is limited
• on the day you apply manure to the pond
• if ever a disease epidemic appears in the pond
Feed utilization
• Regularly check on feed utilization to adjust feeding properly.
• Before feeding, check it there is any feed left over from the previous meal.
• During feeding, observe your fish carefully to see how actively they eat. A
good appetite is a sign of good health and good water quality.
• Every 15 to 30 days, check on the new fish biomass present in the pond
and adjust the daily feeding ration accordingly. Check on feed utilization
during the last 15- to 30-day period by calculating the food conversion
ratio for this period
• At the end of the production cycle, check on feed utilization by calculating
the food conversion ratio for this particular cycle.
When to feed your fish
• Under normal rearing conditions, it is best to feed your fish at least
once a day, usually for six days a week. Feed more often if possible,
particularly for juvenile fish. In some conditions, such as limiting low
temperatures, feed only every two to three days. 
• The best feeding time of the day is early morning, as water
temperature and DO content start increasing. A second distribution
may take place in late afternoon, a couple of hours before sunset. 
• In some cases, using demand feeders, feeding time and amount are
determined directly by the choice of the fish: feed is supplied when
the fish are hungry.
Feed distribution
• On the entire pond area, for example when hand feeding finely ground dry
feedstuffs in small ponds. It makes the food available over a wide area thus
reducing competition among the fish.
• At selected feeding places, for example when feeding sinking feedstuffs in large
ponds. It then becomes easier to check on food utilization. 
• select areas with a firm bottom, avoiding soft mud;
• choose shallow water 0.6 to 1 m deep;
• in large ponds, if you have no boat, keep the feeding places near the shores;
• it is best to have several feeding places: in large ponds, 5 to 7 places/ha for juveniles, and 3
to 4 places/ha for older fish;
• mark the selected areas well, with a vertical wooden pole emerging above the water surface;
• change feed sites if spoiled food builds up on existing sites.
Selected feeding area
• a raised pond floor area made by piling up pond soil to make a mound just below the natural
water level;
• a fixed floating frame made of bamboo, for example; floating food items such as green fodder
plants, chopped aquatic plants or dry, finely ground bran are thrown into the frame;
• a fixed submerged tray, such as a split bamboo tray, on which sinking feed is placed (best
for juvenile fish to reduce waste);
• a fixed submersible tray, placed on supports which may be raised above the water level using
a simple lever assembly operated from the top of the dike;
• a floating tray, easily built as shown, usually tethered to the pond bank;
• perforated devices, such as woven baskets, metal or plastic containers, and pockets made of
small-mesh netting; moist feed is pressed inside so as to squeeze slightly through the
numerous holes all around the device; fish obtain their food by nibbling and sucking the moist
mash through these holes (best for juveniles ).
Feed storage
Feedstuffs must be stored with special care to prevent excessive deterioration in quality and
feed losses. The most Important factors to control are the following. 
• Moisture content of both air and feedstuffs should be maintained as low as possible. You
should try to keep the relative humidity of the air below 75 percent.
• Temperature of both air and feedstuffs should be kept as low as possible. At temperatures
above 25ºC, the rates of deterioration and loss may rapidly increase.
• Moulds (fungi) and insects (beetles, moths, weevils, etc.) may cause considerable losses
and may contaminate feeds with their metabolic by-products. High temperature and high
moisture levels favour their development.
• Rodents (mice, rats, etc.) and birds can consume important quantities of feedstuffs. Their
wastes may also contaminate the feeds.
• Human theft and indirect damage to feed stores may also increase other control problems.
Pond Harvest
• Draining
• Without draining
• Partial harvest
• Total harvest
Without draining
• In ponds that cannot be drained by gravity, unless you are prepared to use a
water pump.
• Partial harvest by capturing the largest fish to thin out the stock, increasing
living space and availability of natural food for the fish left in the pond.
• Monitoring fish stock regularly, for example checking on their growth and the
food conversion efficiency.
• For management purposes such as fishing brooders from broodstock ponds
for spawning or cropping fish fry from spawning ponds where mature fish are
left breeding on a continuous basis.
• Water shortage, when not enough water is available for refilling the pond for
a next production cycle.
Pond harvesting using net
Draining/total harvest
• stop feeding your fish two to three days beforehand;
• manage your pond for efficient draining by good maintenance of its
bottom slope and drainage channels;
• remove water slowly and regularly, enabling the fish to follow it
towards the outlet where they should concentrate;
• at the end, collect fish from the water pools and muddy bottom, if
necessary
Catch basin
Harvest at outlet
Harvesting basin